The Messer Chronicles: This Most Auspicious Meeting
by Meum Cerebrum Nocet
Summary: Every great adventure has its beginning, the event that started it all. For the Marauders, their great adventure began with a letter and a trip on a train. [Book 1] {Repost}
1. Prologue: That Fateful Night

**The Messer Chronicles**

**This Most Auspicious Meeting**

* * *

_Life is partly what we make it, and partly what it is made by the friends we choose_

_~Tennessee Williams_

* * *

**Prologue **

**That Fateful Night**

* * *

_When darkness turns to light_

_It ends tonight_

_It ends tonight_

_~All American Rejects, It Ends Tonight_

* * *

He sat in his favourite chair in the cozy sitting room, occasionally glancing out the front window at the world outside. He'd never really been a part of that world, even though he'd grown up less than a ten-minute walk from his current spot. The world outside was one that occasionally celebrated magic, as was the case on that particular night, but didn't truly believe in it. His world was magic.

Growing up, he would never have changed his position, firmly rooted in the magical world, for the muggle one. His world had always seemed more privileged and exceptional, filled with the ease and wonder of wizardry. However, the closer he got to adulthood, the more he realized how wrong his image of the differences of the two worlds was.

Now, twenty-one years old, and encompassed entirely in a brutal war, James Potter wished he could switch worlds, would give anything to be a carefree muggle. That night, the inhabitants of muggle England were in the midst of celebrating the joyous and magical holiday that was All Hallows Eve. No one outside his window had an obvious care in the world. Passed his window, James watched muggle children dressed in costumes excitedly gathering sweets and treats from the houses throughout the small village of Godric's Hollow. Despite the sizeable magical population that lived in and around the birthplace of legendary wizard Godric Gryffindor, the children were still able to acquire a fair amount of candy.

They weren't worried about a war, or dark genocidal wizards. They weren't in fear for their lives, or unsure of who they could trust or who they couldn't. They were comparatively worry-free. And James wanted nothing more than to be them.

In that moment, it was the muggle children's innocence and joy that James wished he and his young family could experience.

That wasn't to say that the Potters weren't happy and very much in love with each other, but the fact that the most powerful villainous wizard of the day had put James' infant son on his hit-list hung over the trio, ominously and oppressively. It was hard to be truly joyful when you feared for your son's life.

"Look, Harry. Daddy's deep in thought again. Most likely brooding over the fact that he's stuck in the house with no fun us. We're just not as interesting as the Marauders, Harry. We'll just have to accept it." Lily's cheery voice echoed through the silence of the night. She carefully picked her way across the carpeted floor, strewn with Harry's young toddler toys. James turned from the window to watch the two people he loved most in the world.

"Don't listen to your mum, Harry. If she'd only agree to go along with my jokes on Ms. Bagshot, I'd think she was the funniest person in the whole world. It's her fault, really." For his part, Harry seemed to pay his playfully bantering parents no heed; instead, he was intently focused on squirming out of Lily's arms and getting to the toys on the ground. Lily rolled her eyes at the pudgy child in her arms before depositing him in James' lap.

"I've got a little cleaning up to do. Will you mind your son for a moment?" She kissed Harry on the top of his head and leaned in quickly to kiss her husband. She then turned to the small living room with an appraising look. After fishing her wand out of the pocket of her robes, she swished it through the air and sent the toys flying. They landed neatly in the colourful buckets that lined one of the walls. Having temporarily tidied the living room, Lily disappeared into the kitchen to continue cleaning.

James, with Harry nestled safely on his lap, turned back to the window.

"You see the children out there, Harry?" he asked, motioning out into the night, "They're celebrating Halloween, the most magical of holidays. Muggles dress up in costumes and collect candy from their neighbours. Yes, it does sound like an excellent celebration. Why yes, I do wish I could go out there with you and join in the festivities. It is such a nice night, after all."

James continued on having a one-sided conversation with his infant son, explaining the wonders of the muggle world and their traditions around Halloween. He quickly became so wrapped up in it that he failed to notice the slow disappearance of children from the street. He was so focused on telling tales to his young son that he didn't notice the sky darkening to an almost black or the fog beginning to roll in. It wasn't until a black, shadow-like figure passed in front of the window that James finally tore his attention from his son and looked back out the window.

That's when he saw it.

A lone, hooded figure, much too tall to be a child out Trick-or-Treating, was slowly making his way towards the house. Instantly, James was on edge. The figure seemed to exude foreboding and a chill ran up his spine. For a few seconds, James was rooted in place, waiting to see what the figure would do next.

He was pretty sure he was being paranoid. His house was invisible except to those who had been told about it by their secret keeper. Peter would not have told anyone about it; James believed whole-heartedly in his friends. Still, the figure seemed to be looking right at James' front door.

Out of an abundance of caution, James stood and began searching for his wand. Almost as soon as he remembered he'd left it upstairs in the bedroom, feeling no need to have it close in his own home, the figure lifted his arm. James saw the thin, stick-like object protruding from beneath the long sleeve of the figure's cloak and knew.

He knew that his worst nightmare was coming true.

"Lily!" James called, panic rising in his voice. Lily obviously heard it because she apparated to his side. He thrust his young son into her arms. "Lily take Harry and go! It's him. Go! Run! I'll hold him off! Go!" Lily stood still for a beat, looking at James' wandless hands.

"Go!" he urged one final time. This time, she relented and, clutching Harry tight to her chest, disappeared deeper into the house.

As her dark red hair slipped behind the wall, a curse hit the front door, causing the house to shake. Not sure what he would do, but knowing he had to do something, James steeled himself. The next few seconds passed in a blur.

The door burst open.

The figure entered and lowered its hood.

A face, barely human, sneered at him.

Then finally, a flash of green and everything faded to black.


	2. Chapter 1: Yer a Wizard

**Chapter One**

**Yer a Wizard**

_The joy of life is made up of obscure and seemingly mundane victories that gives us our own small satisfactions_

_~Billy Joel_

Sunlight filtered through the window and onto the bed. Sheets and blankets were strewn across the surface, signs of a fitful sleep. A young boy lay on his stomach, arms and legs akimbo, taking up all of the space. His eyes were closed and, despite the spread-eagle pose he was currently in, the boy looked peaceful, still in the grasp of sleep. His hair was a mess of brown, sticking up in every which direction, though that was normal for him. His appendages were thin, but not skinny, and he was of average height.

Slowly, as if at some unheard noise, the boy's eyes fluttered open, revealing pools of light brown brimming with mischievousness and curiosity. With a slightly ungainly stretch, James Potter sat up on his bed and took in his surroundings. His room was a typical room of a ten-year-old wizard boy. His walls were covered with Quidditch posters, his favourite team Puddlemere United making up the majority, but also joined by broom advertisements, and moving images of the various players on the team. His floor was covered with detritus, crumpled parchment, broken quills, and even some bristles from his broom that he'd spent the previous day mending and detailing.

With another, more coordinated stretch, James stood up from his bed and began carefully picking his way across his dirty floor to the door. He could smell the saliva-inducing scent of eggs, bacon, and toast being lovingly prepared for him by his mother in their large kitchen on the floor below. He takes a deep inhale before hurriedly making his way down the hallway, the stairs and into the kitchen.

"It smells delicious, Mum. Is it ready?" James asked, coming to an abrupt stop on the other side of a large island. It was covered with several serving dishes, some containing large piles of food but others empty. There is a large pile of scrambled eggs on one plate. Beside it is a plate of bacon and breakfast sausages. Several plates contain various fruits, melons and grapes and apples and bananas. James inhales the delicious array of scents and, as inconspicuously as possible, reaches for the plate with bacon and sausage. His mother is busy at the stove, preparing something James cannot see, and the young Potter assumes that if he moves quickly and quietly enough, he can sneak a piece or two of bacon off the large plate without his mother noticing.

"You'll ruin your breakfast, Jamie. I am still cooking the pancakes and if you fill up on bacon and sausages you won't have any room for them!" his mother sing-songed, her tone light but mixed in with a false warning tone. She didn't even turn around as she spoke, not once looking in the direction of her son. Not for the first time in his life, James wondered how his mother managed to do that. To know what he was doing without looking at him.

Finally, James' mother, Euphemia Potter, turned around slowly. She was of average height and had a curvy shape. Her face was heart shaped and framed by grey hair that James knew had once deep a dark chestnut brown. She had shimmering green-blue eyes, the same colour of a slightly stormy ocean, which were extremely expressive. James could always tell what his mother was thinking just by looking at her eyes. She smiled down at her son, her face lighting up as she did. James wasn't sure he'd ever seen his mother without a smile; she seemed to be perpetually happy and without a care in the world.

"Your father is in the dining room. Why don't you go join him and I'll bring all this food out when it is ready?" Euphemia phrased her words as if they were a request, but James knew that if he didn't follow them, it would not be appreciated. James returned his mother's smile before slipping out of the kitchen and towards the dining room. As he did so, the Potter's house elf, Strinkly, squeezed past him into the kitchen. Strinkly looked up at James before she joined Euphemia at the kitchen counter and began aiding in the breakfast preparations.

The messy haired boy continued through the door and into the elegant dining room. Sitting at the head of the long table that dominated the room was a man of very similar appearance to the young James Potter, just more aged. The man at the table, Fleamont Potter, had the same brown eyes and perpetually messy hair, though like James' mother, it was light grey instead of the brown it had been previously. Fleamont's face, similar to his wife's, was wrinkled with age, but also with the stress of having owned his own business for several decades.

"Morning, Jamie," Fleamont greeted his young son as the boy made his way down the table towards his father. His father's nose was buried deep in a newspaper, as was usual first thing in the morning. Fleamont always wanted to know the goings on in the wizarding world, but he mostly read the paper for the business section. On the few pages the Daily Prophet devoted to the wizarding industries, Fleamont Potter could keep track of the various Potter dealings. Fleamont himself was responsible for the Sleekazy hair potion, which he had sold some years ago and only had a small financial interest. However, the Potter family was an ancient and noble family and they had their hands in multiple business endeavours in the wizarding economy. Fleamont made sure to keep up with all of them on a daily basis.

James enjoyed knowing that he was a member of an ancient wizarding family. He was an only child having been born late in his parents' life, long after they'd thought it would be possible to have children and after the two Potters had tried to expand their family for decades. Being a part of an old wizarding family made James feel like he had a large family, with branches expanding outward to infinite points. The family he had now was small, just him, his parents, and their ever-present house elf; the idea of an extended family was a very welcoming thought indeed.

"How did Puddlemere do last night? I wish I could have stayed up to listen to the game," James asked his father as the youngest Potter took a seat at the table. He tried to give his father a puppy dog look, trying to make the older man feel a little bit bad about imposing James' bed time despite the fact that their favourite Quidditch team was playing an evening game that would be broadcast on the wireless.

"They won, but it was a long game. I don't think Franklin caught the snitch until almost three hours into play. You would have fallen asleep before the end of the game anyway," Fleamont responded, not succumbing to James' attempted guilt trip. As an only child, James Potter was definitely spoiled. He was doted on and loved immensely. He usually got the things he wanted, new brooms, new potions sets, new games, a new owl. In spite of that, of maybe because of it, James could never make his parents feel guilty on the few occasions when they denied him something. They'd already given him so much, so they didn't have to feel bad when they didn't give him everything.

"You don't know that," James grumbled under his breath as the house elf brought out a cup of juice and a plate filled with the delicious food his mother had been making. "Thanks, Strinkly," James responded, inclining his head to the small creature. James couldn't remember a time in his life when the house elf hadn't been an ever-present part of the Potter household, more his mum's assistant than a slave or house keeper like other households James had been in. His mother did most of the work around the house and Strinkly pitched in, helping her with larger tasks or to get things done quicker.

James tucked into the meal, quickly shovelling food into his mouth. His father, at the end of the table, took small, careful spoon and forkfuls, a little distracted in his eating by the stories in the paper he was reading. Fleamont always ate breakfast like this, with small bites taken in between periods. Eventually, his mother joined them as well, carrying her own plate laden with food.

"What are your plans for today," Euphemia asked her two boys, a warm, loving smile on her face. James turned to look at his father. Unlike some other fathers, James' didn't have to run off to work. It was one benefit of a wealthy, older, already retired father. The two could spend a lot of time together, bonding and sharing interests.

"Well, I was thinking that Jamie and I would spend some time working on his Quidditch skills. Before he knows it, he'll be at Hogwarts trying out for the Gryffindor Quidditch team. How does that sound, Jamie?" Fleamont asked, slowly lowering his paper to give his son an appraising look. James just beamed at his father.

* * *

James was under no illusions that his life was idyllic; that he was spoiled and pampered and wanted for nothing. His parents loved him, gave him the world. He was their little miracle, the child they never thought they would have. They treated him like that miracle as a result. On top of that, the Potter family was prestigious, wealthy, ancient, noble. He was treated differently by others he met, almost like wizarding royalty. He definitely had a charmed life and he wouldn't give it up for anything.

At that moment, his charmed life was leading to him zooming around the vast gardens of the Potter family estate. He had to be careful not to fly to high, lest the muggle families that lived nearby spot him on his broom. He loved living just outside Godric's Hallow because it was a magical village, with lots of magical families living reasonably nearby, but it also provided him with contact with muggles, something a lot of wizarding children did not have the opportunity.

His broom was top of the line, the most expensive one money could buy. It was fast, though James had never raced it against anyone, so he wasn't sure if it was fastest broom on the market. It was agile and could easily move, change direction, and perform some tricky moves. Currently, James was just flying laps, trying to go as fast as he could and avoid hitting the various trees, bushes, and other things that decorated the gardens.

"You're turning a little too sharply. You might fall off or head off in the wrong direction," Fleamont commented as James flew by the back porch of the house. "Try slowing down just a little. It will help you over all." James nodded at his father, making a note to take the advice. This was one of James' favourite things to do. His father had played Quidditch, not professionally but at school, and had some great insight into what James needed in order to improve. The two of them could spend hours out in the back garden working on Quidditch moves, maintaining James' brooms, or discussing the match they had either attended or listened to on the wireless the night before.

James took another lap, slowing down just a little before he made a turn to keep it from being too sharp ad sudden. He wasn't sure if it helped with his speed, but he definitely felt more in control of his broom. When he got back to his father, he dismounted his broom, looking expectantly up at the older man.

"Much better," Fleamont commented, smiling warmly down at his son. James was about to remount his broom and try again when a light pop alerted the two men to an apparition. Standing only a few feet away, where she hadn't been before, was the Potter's house elf Strinkly.

"Mrs. Potter says that lunch is served. She has also asked that Master James clean up his room this afternoon. It is getting a little messy and she has threated to allow me to throw away whatever is on the floor." The elf smiled warmly up at the two. Strinkly had an odd obsession with throwing away things that were on the floor, even if they weren't garbage. She was always confused when James was upset that something, he had left on the ground went missing; Strinkly assumed that things left on the floor were unimportant and belonged in the trash.

"I'll do it," James grumbled. His mother was of the belief that, even though Strinkly's role was to serve the Potters, that didn't mean she did all the jobs the Potter's didn't want to do. James had to take on some household responsibilities, especially when it came to his room. He wasn't happy about having to clean his room instead of spending the afternoon on his broom, but he would do it to make his mother happy and keep his items from the trash bin.

Really, if James was being objective, his life could be a lot worse than occasionally having to clean his room and tidy up after himself. Though, he thought, it could, and would, get a lot better when he finally got his Hogwarts letter and went off to school. Not only would he get to learn magic, play Quidditch, and meet hundreds of people his own age, his mother wouldn't be there to tell him to clean up his room.

Hogwarts would make an amazing life even better.


	3. Chapter 2: Owl Mail

**Chapter Two**

**Owl Mail**

* * *

_A dream doesn't become reality through magic; it takes sweat, determination, and hard work._

_~Colin Powell_

* * *

James hurried along the hallway, his robes swishing around behind him as he moved. He was late to class, which wasn't good, but he had a very good reason. He'd left his dorm room with plenty of time to make it to his Transfiguration class but had gotten sidetracked by a very important mission. It couldn't be helped; he'd had to save the day. Hopefully, his professor would understand.

Luckily, James was not alone. Rushing along aside him was his partner in crime and best friend. Together, the two of them could take on the world, and could definitely withstand whatever their angry professor could throw at them. Even though their story was a totally reasonable story and excellent reason to be late so their professor shouldn't have anything to throw.

Finally, the pair burst into the classroom, about twenty minutes after they should have been there. It may have been a better idea to make a more subtle entrance, to quietly sneak in and find a seat. Then, maybe their professor wouldn't realise they were late. However, subtle James Potter was not. He didn't have a subtle bone in his body, and neither did his friend. They banged into classroom, whether they were on time or twenty minutes late.

Their loud entrance, with the door banging open and then shut, ground the class to a halt. Their professor, who had been up at the front of the room, lecturing about some property of transfiguration or the other, stopped mid-sentence and leveled the two tardy boys with a less than impressed glare. Everyone in the class turned and stared, wondering what, or who, had caused the commotion.

"Mr. Potter," the professor said. That was it, just his name. Not his friend's name. not a question about why he was late or where he had been.

"Mr. Potter," the professor said again. This time, though, the voice was higher-pitched, almost squeaky.

"Mr. Potter! It is time to wake up!" the professor's voice turned fully into the high, squeaky voice of his family's house elf. It was accompanied by a light shaking that finally dragged James' consciousness from his dream to reality. Slowly, and a little sadly, James rolled over to face the small creature.

"What time is it?" James mumbled, rubbing the sleep out of his eyes. He was not really a morning person, but this morning seemed much earlier than he normally woke up, and therefore it was much more difficult to function at that moment.

"Almost nine o'clock, Mr. Potter. Your mother was worried you'd sleep through breakfast, so she sent me to come and get you. You must hurry downstairs or it may be cold," the small house elf squeaked before backing out of James' room. Strinkly didn't wait to see whether or not James actually got out of bed. She obviously had more important things that required more of her attention than making sure James woke up and got to breakfast.

With a tired, slightly exasperated groan, James pulled himself out of bed. For a brief second, he thought about getting dressed, changing out of his pyjamas so he wouldn't have to come back upstairs after breakfast and could instead head straight out to his backyard improvised Quidditch pitch. However, if Strinkly, and by extension his mother, was so concerned that he would miss a warm breakfast that he had been woken up, he might not have time to change.

Deciding that breakfast was more important than a slight delay in Quidditch practicing, James hurried out of his bedroom and down to the large dining room. His father, almost a permanent fixture at the table during meals, was not sitting at the head of the table. James hadn't thought he'd slept that long, Strinkly had said it was only nine o'clock. That wasn't that late. And yet, James had apparently missed breakfast entirely.

There was a plate left in James' usual spot on the table, filled with delicious smelling food and kept under a faint warming spell. Overcome by the delicious smell of the food, James quickly took his usual spot and dug in. he shovelled food into his mouth, hungrier than he'd realised.

After about five minutes, the door between the dining room and the kitchen quietly squeaked open and his mother's jovial face peaked through. "Ah good, you're up!" she chimed, waving her wand around the table to tidy it up and wipe it clean of any mess.

"Yes. Sorry. I didn't realise I'd overslept," James apologized, a little sheepishly. "I was having a really good dream about the adventures I will be having once I get to Hogwarts. I must have gotten so wrapped up in it." James then continued to shovel his food into his mouth.

"Well, you'll have to be better at waking up on time once you get to school, Jamie. There won't be anyone around, except maybe your dormmates, to wake you up if you oversleep. And if you're late there, you'll miss more than a warm breakfast. You could be late for class and your professor will definitely not like that sort of behaviour. I remember I was almost late for class once because I was helping a lost first year and Professor Dumbledore, who was one of the most caring professors and is now headmaster, almost took house points away from me. So, you best be on your best behaviour." Euphemia levelled her son with a look that was meant to convey to James just how serious she was.

James definitely got it. When his mother gave him that look, her jovial, caring, matronly look disappeared, and James became a little terrified of the consequences of defying his mother. He quickly nodded his agreement to his mother and, having finished his breakfast, stood and took his plate into the kitchen. Normally, he would have left his plate for his mother or Strinkly the house elf to clean up, but that look had him doing everything he could to make sure his mother was happy with him.

He then hurried up the stairs to his room, changed into simple pants and a shirt, and headed out into the Potter's backyard to practice Quidditch. It had been quite some time, over fifty years or so, since a first year had made it on to their house Quidditch team, but James was sure that if he practiced enough, he could be the one to break that streak.

* * *

The wind whipped through his hair as he raced high above the ground, the quaffle secured under his arm. Quickly, as if it was second nature, required no forethought and very little movement and effort, he dodged a Slytherin chaser and a bludger aimed at his head almost simultaneously. He urged his broom faster and, within seconds, he was away from the rest of the pack, both Slytherin and Gryffindor players far behind him.

It was only him and the nervous looking Slytherin keeper. It was almost as if the other boy knew he was no match for the superior skill of James Potter.

With only a little effort, James sent the quaffle flying passed the keeper and into the goal post. The crowd erupted as the announcer's voice boomed over the crowd, letting them know that it was James' 100 point and that he had almost single-handedly put his team up 140 to 0.

"The crowd is going wild! James Potter is an unstoppable force! Gryffindor won the lottery when he was sorted into their house!"

A chuckle sounded from off to James' right and he carefully turned on his broom to see his father standing on the back porch. "Is that so. I'm glad my son is such an amazing Quidditch star, but I think it is a little harder when you're actually playing against another team."

James' scowled at his father, having ruined his fantasy about being the star of the Gryffindor Quidditch team. In reality, he had been flying around the grounds of his family's manor house, imaging the crowds, the teammates, and the opponents.

"Well, it will all be true! Just you wait! When I get to Hogwarts, it will all become true." James then flew off into a further off corner so that he could continue on with his fantasy.

James had been having dreams and daydreams of Hogwarts adventures more and more often as the summer months had passed on. Soon, at the midsummer mark, his Hogwarts letter would be arriving, his confirmation of his attendance at the prestigious wizarding school. James had been awaiting his time at Hogwarts since he was old enough to know what it was. His father's and mother's stories had filled his ears since he was a baby and he couldn't wait to have his own stories, his own adventures.

For James, Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry offered the endless potential for things to happen. He had an idyllic life with his parents, but it was a little boring. Rarely did exciting things happen to him in sleepy Godric's Hallow. But Hogwarts was a bigger, more magical place. He would be learning new spells that he could use to battle enemies and save the innocent from evil. He would make friends his own age that he could goof around with and help him battle those enemies and save those innocent people from evil. He couldn't wait for it all to start. Until he got his letter though, he was left with nothing more than his own imaginings to keep him going.

* * *

"You seem to have some very interesting ideas about what you'll get up to at Hogwarts, Jamie," his father, Fleamont mused one evening over dinner. There was only about a day or two until his mother figured his Hogwarts letter would arrive and James' imagination was in over drive. That afternoon his father had found him with a stick from a tree in a grove behind the house; he was using it as a wand and was in the middle of battling a great enemy. The enemy didn't have a name or a description really, but it wasn't a student. James, as an eleven-year-old inexperienced wizard was going up against a fully grown, fully trained wizard.

At the time, James' father had simply chuckled at the grandeur with which James envisioned his future at Hogwarts. Now, apparently, his father wanted to discuss it. James simply nodded at his father and forced down the large mouthful of food he had shoved in only moments before.

"Hogwarts is a place of grand adventures. That's what I'm imaging my time will be," he stated simply once he'd swallowed his food.

"I don't remember my time at Hogwarts ever involving an intense duel with a wizard way out of my league. That's an interesting thing to be imaging happening. Not to mention being a star Quidditch player in your first year, almost single-handedly winning a game for Gryffindor. You are a good Quidditch player, and you practice more than anyone else, but that's a bit of a stretch of the imagination."

James frowned at his father. He knew he wasn't trying to be cruel, but the elder Potter was doing an excellent job at dashing James' dreams. Fleamont was a very practical man; he didn't believe in getting your hopes up too high, believing in extremely unlikely things because they would most likely not come true. If James was too grandiose in his imaginings, and then his experience at Hogwarts was more on the average side, it could be devastating for the young boy who was so used to getting his own way. James knew that was what his father was doing, he'd said as much the other day when he'd caught James' pretending to hold court of seventh years who had turned to the first year for advice on how to pass their N.E.W.T.s, but that didn't mean it hurt any less.

Just then, a squawking noise sounded from the Potters' sitting room ad drew everyone's attention away from the conversation at hand and toward the source of the noise. James, having a pretty good idea of what had caused the noise, bolted from the table and rushed to the sitting room.

Resting atop James' father's favourite wing chair was a brown owl. It looked a little haughty, like it had been entrusted with an extremely important mission and it had just accomplished it in excellent fashion. On the table beside the chair, and in between the open window and the owl's current perch, was a small letter.

James rushed over to the table, his limbs going slightly akimbo in his awkward rush. His uncontrolled motions startled the owl and sent it soaring back out the window. James momentarily wondered why it had stayed in the first place -perhaps it had been expecting a treat for having completed it's task admirably. However, that was no more than a fleeting thought before his attention was brought back to the letter the owl had delivered.

Scrawled in elegant script across the front was him name, James Potter, and the address of the Potter Manor just outside Godric's Hallow. The letter was for him. James' heart began to beat faster as anticipation and excitement overtook him. His hands shook slightly as he turned the letter over and saw the wax seal that held the contents firmly within the envelope. Pressed into the wax was the Hogwarts crest.

This was it. It had finally arrived. James' Hogwarts letter was here. His adventure was finally beginning.

* * *

_Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry_

_Headmaster: Albus Dumbledore_

_(Order of Merlin, First Class, Grand Sor. Chf. Warlock,_

_Supreme Mugwump, International Confed. of Wizards)_

_Dear Mr. Potter,_

_We are pleased to inform you that you have a place at Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. Please find enclosed a list of all necessary books and equipment. _

_Term beings on 1 September. We await your owl by no later than 31 July._

_Yours Sincerely,_

_Cornelius Greensleigh_

_Deputy Headmaster_


	4. Chapter 3: Out on the Town

**Chapter Three**

**Out on the Town**

* * *

_Veni, Vidi, Visa_

_~Unknown_

* * *

The day had finally arrived. James and his parents would finally be making the traditional first-year shopping trip to Diagon Alley. If a witch or wizard in England was going to Hogwarts, at any year really, but especially for their first year, a trip to Diagon Alley was necessary. There were small shops that sold the items needed by first year witches and wizards throughout England. But these were often one offs, tucked away in small corners away from other magical retailers to minimize the chance that a curious and over-observant muggle noticed them. Diagon Alley was the largest magical shopping area, a veritable one-stop-shop for whatever a young witch or wizard needed.

James had been to Diagon Alley. Countless times before he'd walked through the buildings with their magical wares. He grew up in the magical world and his mother made a trip to the shopping district at least once a month to gather whatever magical sundries she needed to run a house. If there was a party or function to be held, James might even be treated to a second trip.

He loved going to Diagon Alley because it was a prime opportunity for him to interact with other wizards that were around his age, or at least younger than his parents' friends. Despite living just outside a wizarding village, James had minimal interactions with any of the magical denizens that resided within Godric's Hallow. Diagon Alley was really the only chance he had.

But this trip would be far more special than any other trip he had ever made. Sure, he would still get to interact with witches and wizards, but on top of that he would be travelling to Diagon Alley to shop for his first year at Hogwarts.

If getting his acceptance letter was the nudge in the right direction on his grand journey, going to Diagon Alley was the first official step. He was finally starting off on this adventure and that made this trip so extra special. As a result, James was absolutely giddy as the Potters finished up breakfast on the warm, sunny August day and prepared to leave for Diagon Alley.

"I'll take James with me. We'll plan to meet just outside Flourish and Blotts. That'll be our first stop? Sound good?" Euphemia asked as she waved her wand to remove the dirty dishes. The easiest way to travel from Godric's Hallow to Diagon Alley was by apparition, as it required the least forethought in order to leave on a trip. Both Floo powder and a portkey required ministry permission and planning to be put into place. However, James was not old enough to apparate, hadn't learned the magical theory behind it, and would have to side-along apparate.

"Excellent! Well, shall we?" Fleamont asked, raising from his seat at the head of the table. James, who was actually bouncing in his seat, shot up. He, with some effort, tried to contain his enthusiasm as he walked over to his mother and grabbed her outstretched hand.

Almost as soon as his fingers closed around hers, a fairly intense suffocating sensation overtook him. If a muggle were to ask James what apparition felt like, he would say that it felt like you were being squeezed extremely tightly, like space was trying to hinder your progress.

Only brief, though they didn't feel brief, seconds later, the pressure let up. Space relented. James and his mother appeared, between moments, in front of the wizarding bookstore, Flourish and Blotts. Seconds after their appearance, James' father materialised to their right.

"What's on the list?" Fleamont asked, removing his glasses to wipe them with a cloth he retrieved from his pocket. James always found this habit strange as apparition didn't seem to dirty his own glasses and yet, every time his father apparated, he cleaned his glasses afterwards.

"He needs: The Standard Book of Spells, Level One , by Miranda Goshawk, A History of Magic by Bathilda Bagshot-" Harry's mother continued on reading off a list she had stashed away in one of her many pockets. James, however, wasn't interested in the long list of textbooks he would need. He was interested in, and excited about, what he would be learning, and the mere fact that he would finally formally be learning magic; what he wasn't interested in was the books he would use to do so. That wasn't as interesting as purchasing his first wand or gathering potion supplies. Books and reading about magic were not adventurous.

Less than enthusiastically, James followed his parents into the bookstore, lagging behind slightly as his mother expertly wound her way among the stacks and displays of books, locating each volume on her list quickly and efficiently. A small part of James' mind wondered if his mother was so knowledgeable about book locations because she'd been in the shop so often that it was second nature for her, or if she knew where everything was because she had traced the same path when she was a student at Hogwarts.

Finally, she had a large stack of books floating along behind her thanks to a well-practiced locomotor skill. James wasn't sure he'd ever seen his mother carry anything heavier than a single dish. She was perpetually followed by various objects wherever she went, her hands free in case a need arose.

'This is going fairly quickly,' James thought, happily. 'If we can get through the rest of the list just as fast there will be plenty of time to shop at Quality Quidditch Supplies!' The Quidditch store was James' true objective, as it was with almost every trip to Diagon Alley. He could spend hours just wandering around the stacks and shelves. Hopefully, the rest of their errands, the list of items James required for his first year at Hogwarts, wouldn't take more than an hour.

* * *

"Stand up straighter, dear. If you slouch, I will miss hem your robes and they will be too short. Good posture is essential for robe fitting," the, to James' ear, nasally voice of Madame Malkin sounded. She accompanied them with a whack to James' back. He yelped in surprise but did as the woman asked.

"Better," the dress maker mumbled as she returned to pinning the bottoms of James' robes. She also seemed to manage to nick him with the pins quite a few times, though whether she did this on purpose, as payback for slouching, or by accident James couldn't say.

"Don't worry, Jamie darling. This won't take too much longer. We'll be looking at which broom you'll use to win the Quidditch Cup for Gryffindor in no time," Fleamont Potter spoke. He was reclined in a plush armchair, a few days old paper opened before his nose. James hadn't mentioned his desire to go to the Quidditch store, but Fleamont was his father and knew him extremely well. It probably hadn't been too hard to figure out why his son's previously extremely excited mood had slowly soured as the hours of the day had passed and the list didn't seem to be reducing in size.

That fact was probably, James mused to himself as Madame Malkin stuck a pin into his ankle. He bit back the swear that bubbled to the surface by continuing his internal thought. 'My sour mood was probably why father suggested we split up and he sent Mum on to the apothecary. If we can cover twice the ground in the same time, then we can get to the Quidditch store sooner.'

"Nearly done, dear. Only a few more spots to pin up," Madame Malkin spoke. James' mood began to lift.

Off in the distance, a bell chimed. Someone had walked into the store.

The bell, acting as a call, summoned Madame Malkin away from her position at James' feet. He tried not to groan. She had just said she was almost done hemming his robes; after standing still and trying and failing to not slouch, for over an hour, just as reprieve had been offered, it had been taken away.

Why, James wondered, did the universe not want him to get to the Quidditch store with any sort of time to browse before he'd have to return home?

"Chin up, Jamie. There will still be plenty of time to visit the Quidditch store," Fleamont said, as if he could read his son's mind. Or maybe, James thought as he rearranged his face to smile, his father had simply read his frustration and disappointment on his face.

"Besides," Fleamont continued, lowering his newspaper, "we still have to get you a wand. If we don't get to the Quidditch shop today, we do need to get you a wand. And I remember when I got my first wand. I finally felt like a true wizard; I could finally perform controlled, deliberate magic. It's quite a magical experience." Fleamont's eyes sparkled at the memory as he discussed getting a wand.

James had, quite surprisingly, forgotten about getting a wand. He had come to Diagon Alley to buy books, potion supplies, clothes, and all of the other items on his list, but never a wand. He had forgotten that a wand was an important part of being a wizard; it would be a very long time, if ever, before James could perform wandless magic. A wand was a necessity. Yet, because he had been so in the frame of mind of this being just a slightly more exciting trip to Diagon Alley, his excitement had been situated on what he was normally excited about when he visited Diagon Alley.

"My wand!" James vocalized, the sounds sort of escaping without him really realising, "I forgot about getting a wand." James spoke the last part louder than the first two words, but still under his breath. He felt a little foolish and didn't want his dad to realise it.

"Right this way, Mrs. Black. We'll get little Sirius all ready for Hogwarts. Don't you worry," Madame Malkin's voice sounded from the front of the shop. She rounded the corner to where James and his father were still standing, a haughty woman and a long haired boy following on her heel. The haughty woman took a look around the area, her gaze penetrating and judgemental. However, she seemed to find her surroundings satisfactory and relaxed.

"Fleamont," the woman said by way of greeting. James had never seen this woman before in his life, meaning she wasn't a friend of the Potters, but she obviously was an acquaintance of some kind.

"Walburga. I didn't realise you had a son the same age as James." When Fleamont said his son's name, he gestured in the direction of James, standing rather awkwardly on a pedestal, hoping to have his robe pinning completed.

"Yes. Sirius will be starting Hogwarts this year," the woman his father called Walburga responded curtly. She then turned her back on the Potters and found a chair about as far away from them as possible. The boy seemed to give James and his father an apologetic look at his mother's behaviour before hopping up onto the pedestal beside James.

"I'm Sirius," the boy, his long hair falling into his eyes a little, spoke.

"James," James responded, smiling warmly at the boy.

* * *

With two customers, it seemed to take Madame Malkin an inordinate amount of time to finish pining James' robe. He wasn't sure if there would be time to go to Quality Quidditch Supplies, though that prospect didn't sting quite as much. Not now that he'd remembered he was getting a wand today. That was where he and his father had headed right after they'd left Madame Malkin's robes.

Ollivander, the best wandmaker in London, had a fairly prominent shop on Diagon Alley. It wasn't particularly busy like other shops. Most people only needed one or two wands throughout their lifetimes; it wasn't like potion ingredients or books that necessitated multiple visits within even a year. However, the emptiness of the shop was very welcoming to James. This was a special moment; one he didn't particularly want to share with hordes of people.

"Ah, Mr. Potter. Welcome back!" an aged voice said from behind the counter. The voice was followed shortly by an elderly looking man. James guessed he was probably around the same age as his father, though Ollivander (who James guessed the old man was) appeared much older than Fleamont.

"Yes, time to get Jamie here his wand," Fleamont responded.

"What an exciting time!" Ollivander spoke before turning around to face the stacks, shelfs, and piles of wands that were contained behind the shop counter. He quickly, almost instinctively pulled out three different wand boxes before turning back to face James and his father.

"Now, young Master Potter, what have you heard about wands?" Ollivander asked, observing the young boy as if his answer would change his impression of the young Potter.

"Dad has always said that the wand chooses the wizard. That I don't pick my wand, but I'll know when I've found the right one," James spoke. He looked up at his father as he spoke, remembering the countless times Fleamont had regaled his son with the adventure of purchasing his first wand. One wand that was a particularly bad match for the elder Potter had nearly burned down Ollivander's in its protest.

"Excellent. Excellent," Ollivander murmured as he presented James with the first of the three wands. "Pear wood, quite flexible, 10 ¾" with a unicorn hair core," he explained the wand. James took it, a little reluctantly having just remembered his father's tale. As he wrapped his fingers around the wood, he didn't feel anything. He wasn't sure what he was expected to feel, but he was pretty sure he was supposed to feel something.

"Give it a wave, Jamie. See what it'll do for you," Fleamont spoke, putting his hands supportively on his son's shoulders. Feeling a little more confident at the fact that nothing bad had happened immediately, James gave his wand a swish. Once again, nothing happened. James turned to Ollivander who looked neutral.

"This next one," Ollivander spoke once James had discarded the pear wand, "is Alder wood, unyielding, 11 ½" with dragon heartstring." James, confident but a little bit upset at the lack of response from the first wand, eagerly grabbed the second one. As soon as he had lifted it from the box, red and green sparks began shooting out of the end.

"Not that one either," Ollivander spoke, returning the wand to its box. There was only one wand left, though James was sure that if this wasn't his wand either that Ollivander had even more to choose from.

"This one is quite pliable. It is made of mahogany, 11" with dragon heartstring."

As soon as James' fingers closed around the wand, he felt a warm feeling within his gut. The wand rested perfectly on his palm, feeling like an extension of his being.

"This is it," James spoke, his voice filled with awe. He hadn't even lifted it out of the box and yet he knew he'd found his wand. He stared down at the wand in his hand, his wand, excited that he finally had the one thing he needed to be a wizard.

Hogwarts was only a few weeks away and he would be off on his adventure, wand in hand ready to practice any and all magic.


	5. Chapter 4: Onto the Train

**Chapter Four**

**On to the Train**

* * *

_The joys of parents are secret, and so are their griefs and fears; they cannot utter the one, nor will they utter the other_

_~Sir. Francis Bacon_

* * *

A clatter of activity rose from the lower levels of the house. It created a comforting hum in the background. James enjoyed the familiarity of it, even on this day where everything was about to change. Today was September 1, the day the train left, the day he officially started Hogwarts. For the past few weeks, his excitement had slowly been growing until coming to a peak the night before. Unable to sleep, James had flipped through all of his textbooks, re-read Hogwarts, A History, and practiced some simple spells.

Now, he lay on his bed, fully clothed and ready for his trip into London and, eventually, onto the Scottish Highlands and Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He was listening to his mother and the family house elf move about the kitchen, preparing food. It was a phenomenon that James had woken up to every day for as long as he could remember. His mother was an absolutely amazing cook and every day James had the luxury of her home made breakfasts. A slight pang resonated through him as he realised this would be his last homemade breakfast for several months.

"James?" a deep, silky voice asked from the other side of the door. "Are you almost ready, son?" The voice, which belonged to his father, had a slight catch in it. James recognized it as an excess of emotions that his father was trying to tamp down. As excited as James was to leave for Hogwarts, he could tell his parents were saddened. He was an only child, and absolutely spoiled by his older parents as a result. He was a major part of his parents' lives and his leaving would surely leave a large hole.

He felt another pang.

"Ready, father," James called out as he sprang up off his bed. Despite leaving his parents, and his mother's cooking, James was ready and excited to be leaving for school. He bubbled with the anticipation of learning spells, jinxes, and hexes, of learning how to brew potions and read the stars. He anxiously awaited being sorted –into Gryffindor, of course- and meeting his fellow house- and dorm-mates. He would try out for the house team as soon as there was an opening. He would surround himself with friends his age. All of it was endlessly exciting.

James opened the door to his bedroom to find his father. His face, obviously carefully schooled to not reveal the emotions his voice had nearly given away, was a mask of cheery joy. His eyes, though shinny with the potential of tears, still held the youth and joy that was not possessed by some men half his age. It was this youthful energy that had allowed James' father to teach him to fly and play Quidditch. It was the youthful look that his father always had in his eyes. He was obviously trying not to upset James over his sadness at the boy leaving.

"All packed then?" Fleamont inquired, looking around his son into the room. For the briefest of minutes, James saw the joy in his father's eyes slip and be replaced with the sadness that James had spotted under the surface of his face. However, this time he spoke, his voice did not shake, but remained steady, even a little cheery.

"In the corner," James responded before he bounded down the stairs and into the kitchen. He could tell his father was upset with his departure and trying to hide it from his son. James, not wanting to be the cause of any undo stress or pain decided to leave his father alone with his emotions.

He gleefully slid into the kitchen then stopped suddenly, nearly causing himself to fall over. His sudden stop had been caused by the extraordinary sight in the large Potter kitchen. Food of all types, colours, and smells covered nearly every available surface. It appeared that his mother and the family house elf, Strinkly, had made all of James' favourite foods, and then some. Doing some quick calculations in his head, James figured he'd have to eat non-stop for a week before all the food was gone.

"Mum!" he exclaimed, "I may be a growing boy, but you've cooked for a whole Quidditch team's worth of growing boys! How do you expect me to eat all this?" James' eyes grew wider at the sight as he moved through the kitchen and took in even more of the food. His mother appeared from the door off to the right, which led to the pantry. James suspected that the once full room was now very sparse, most of its food contents having gone into the feast that lay before him.

"You eat your fill, Jamie. Whatever is left is going to the church in town to help with those less fortunate than us." She wiped her hands on an apron adorned with Snitches and Quaffles that had been a Christmas present from James the year before. She took a moment to survey the kitchen and mirth coloured her expression right up to her ocean spray eyes.

"I may have gone a little overboard," she conceded, "but it's not every day your baby boy starts his first day at Hogwarts. It'll be a while until you're home with us again and I wanted to make sure you had all your favourites so you wouldn't be missing them. Of course, if you do, a quick owl home and I'll have a care package ready for the next days post."

Euphemia turned to look at her son. James had perpetually messy dark brown hair that would not lay flat no matter what spell or product his mother used. He had his father's dark brown, mischievous eyes. He was thin, though not scrawny despite the amount of food that his mother cooked for him.

Now, as his mother took in the sight of him dressed for the trip into London in trousers and a collared shirt, the mirth began to fade from her eyes. Feeling awkward because of the raw emotions in his mother's eyes, James quickly focused on the mountains of food.

A light nudging on the side of his leg drew his attention to the floor. Reaching to just below his hip, her large eyes wide and filling with tears, was the Potter family house elf, Strinkly. She was holding up a plate for James to take and fill. He quickly took the plate and thanked the elf. Strinkly then quickly disappeared into the pantry. James assumed the elf was crying out of sight and it made him embarrassed and more awkward.

Eagerly wanting to get away from the outpouring of emotion, James began filling the plate. He then left the kitchen and headed into the formal dinning room. His father, having brought down James' trunk, was sitting at the table, a full plate of food from the kitchen in front of him. He also had a steaming cup of tea and was reading the most recent edition of the Daily Prophet.

"I see you've got your fill," Mr. Potter spoke from behind his paper. James had always been astonished by his father's ability to apparently see through the newspaper or whatever else he was reading. James placed his plate down on the table and took his regular spot. He then quickly dug into his meal.

After a few minutes, his mother joined the table, though she only had a cup of tea. Throughout his eleven years, James had rarely seen his mother eat with him and his father at breakfast and lunch. She would often wait until the boys had their fill and then eat her meal in the kitchen. She continued this behaviour even though there was no possibility of there not being enough food. James smiled at the consistency of his family despite the irregularity of the day.

The Potter family quickly fell into their morning routine, with Mr. Potter reading and sharing the news stories with Mrs. Potter. She would then add information she had gleaned through her social circle. All the while, James would be shovelling food into his mouth and occasionally tuning in to his parents' conversations. The only difference on that particular morning compared to all the others was a near-constant clamour that resonated from the kitchen as Strinkly prepared the excess food for the small church in the muggle town just outside the Potter manor grounds.

"Alright," Fleamont Potter suddenly exclaimed, folding his paper. He stood from the table and gave his wife and son a look, "Time to get going. The train will be leaving soon." Mrs. Potter nodded in agreement and stood.

"Strinkly!" she called. Moments later, the elf's head poked out of the kitchen. "Would you please clean up the breakfast dishes and finish up with that food. I will take it to the church when I get back." The elf nodded, then quickly ducked back into the kitchen, tears once again filling her large eyes.

Feeling the enormity of the fast approaching events, James remained seated for a few more minutes. He pretended to be finishing up his food. In reality, he wanted to hang on to the normalcy and routine of the day for a few more minutes. He was excited to start at Hogwarts, to learn all the magic he possibly could and meet amazing friends and potential partners-in-crime, but he was still hesitant about leaving the familiarity of his home.

"You coming, Jamie?" his mother asked. Feeling he could no longer put it off, James stood and went to grab his mother's hand. As the dark pressure of apparation engulfed him, he took one final look at the welcoming dinning room. He was ready, he told himself, to begin this great adventure.

* * *

The Potters appeared in an empty side street a few blocks from King's Cross Station in London, England. James let go of his mother's hand; he was far too old and mature to be holding it in public. He turned to look at his father, who was standing a few feet away with James' trunk. The elder Potter nodded for his son to lead the way towards the station.

James eagerly headed out into the street and onto the train station. While James' parents had told him about muggles and as much of the muggle world as they knew about and understood, James had never really been in the muggle world. The village near his parents' estate, Godric's Hallow, was a wizarding village that a few muggle families had moved into; it wasn't a muggle village. Being in London, surrounded by muggles and their way of life was staggering. James found himself looking from side-to-side, trying to take it all in.

A chuckle from behind him made James momentarily stop his searching and turn towards the source. His mother was walking a few steps behind him, a gleeful expression on her face.

"As I've always said, Jamie, muggles are endlessly fascinating."

"If you can," his father added, "you should try and take muggle studies in your third year. I found it quite the illuminating subject." James nodded, always one to follow his father's advice.

After five minutes of walking, the trio arrived at King's Cross Station. It was full of people busily hurrying about, trying to get to their train on time. It was mostly a place of muggle transportation, but the wizards of Britain had built a secret platform to transport underage wizards to and from Hogwarts. James, knowing all about the magical properties of this platform, purposefully began to walk through the building.

A few meters from the platform entrance, he saw a foursome, two parents and their daughters, earnestly consulting a piece of parchment. At the top, James could make out the Hogwarts seal. This, he reasoned, must be a muggle family with a magical daughter consulting instructions on how to get to the train. Feeling confident in his abilities, James strode over to the family to offer his assistance.

"Hello," he spoke, his voice friendly if a little haughty, "are you trying to get onto the platform?" He kept his question fairly vague so as not to arose the family if they were not, in fact, looking for Platform 9 ¾.

"You know about the magical platform?" the man asked, lowering his voice to a whisper on the words 'magical platform.' James nodded his head, a smile breaking across his face. His ability to help this obviously confused family brought him great joy.

"Platform 9 ¾? Yeah, I do. I'm heading off on my first year!" The woman smiled warmly at James.

"Lily is as well. It's all very exciting for us!" she spoke, patting the red-haired girl on the head. Her sister, her hair a red-ish blonde that was much lighter than the other girl, scowled. Her face looked even more pinched at the expression.

"Well," James spoke, getting down to business, "the entrance to the platform is that pillar there, between 9 and 10. Just walk through it and you'll be there!" Both the man and the woman eyed the sturdy looking brick pillar with apprehension.

"Thank you, son," the man spoke after several seconds, "well, Lily, Petunia, come along now." He grabbed the older blonde girl's hand, Petunia, James assumed, while his wife grabbed Lily's. Then they headed very determinedly towards the platform entrance, pushing a trolley containing a large trunk in front of them. James watched as they disappeared through the brick.

"That was awfully nice of you, Jamie," his mother spoke, coming up behind him. "Now what do you say we get you onto the train and off to Hogwarts?" she offered James her hand and, despite the fact that they were in public, he gladly took it. They then also headed towards the pillar, his father close behind with the trunk and James' brand new tawny owl.

The threesome disappeared through the pillar and came out to an area filled with steam. As it cleared a little, James got his first glimpse at the Hogwart's Express. His adventure was truly about to begin.


	6. Chapter 5: The Houses Divided

**Chapter Five **

**The Houses Divided**

* * *

_Home is the place where, when you have to go there, they have to take you in_

_~Robert Frost_

* * *

James' father levitated James' trunk up and onto the train. James stood by watching his father as his mother busily fussed over him, her eyes glassy with tears. James, also upset over his impending departure, allowed his mother to continue her ministrations without even a look of disgust. As strong as his desire was to start his adventure, to meet and interact with people his own age, he was still going to miss his parents and the life and routine he had established over the past eleven years.

"Alright then," Fleamont said, quickly checking his ornate antique pocket watch. The Potters, being an old wizarding family had a lot of heirlooms. The old pocket watch his father used was definitely his favourite because it had belonged to Fleamont's great-great-great-great-grandfather. James, for his part, couldn't wait until he came of age and, as his father had promised several years prior, he would be gifted the pocket watch.

"Well, it's five to eleven," Fleamont continued, "probably time for you to be heading aboard and finding a seat, James. Don't want to miss the train on your first day!" His voice was light and jokey, but, as James turned to look up at his father, he saw the same tear-filled, glassy eyes as his mother. Almost instantly, James felt tears welling up in his eyes. He quickly threw his arms around his parents, not caring about how it looked to the others on the platform. In that moment, all that mattered was that he received some comfort from his parents.

He dug his head into his mother's stomach and pulled his father close to his side. After a brief moment, in which James assumed they were surprised, his parents enclosed James with their arms in a loving group hug.

"I'm going to miss you guys," James mumbled, his voice unclear because of the fact that his face was buried in his mother's stomach.

"We will miss you, too, Jamie," his mother responded, rubbing soothing circles onto James' back, "write to us as much as you want. There are school owls you can use. Maybe we'll even look into getting you your own owl so that you don't have to worry about borrowing one from school. We'll write back as soon and as often as we can. Now, as hard as it may be, you need to head off onto the train." At his mother's last few words, James hurriedly pulled away. His normal bravado had returned and he confidently climbed onto the train.

James' eyes grew wide as he took in all the sights of the train. The small alleyway down the middle of the train was filled with loud, boisterous students. Various magical toys and items, including Fanged Frisbees and toy brooms, were being thrown around the hallway while various kinds of magical poppers and flashbangs were going off in the air. It was like a giant party on the train; students were celebrating their return to school, their ability to perform magic, their being with friends and possibly away from parents and family, and all the Quidditch games and other events they would experience and partake in.

James smiled at the sight before him, imagining all that he would experience once he arrived at Hogwarts School for Witchcraft and Wizardry. Instantly, all trepidation and sadness that he had felt about leaving his parents vanished and James excitedly moved forward to join in on the celebratory chaos. He wadded through the crowd, pulling his trunk along behind him. He quickly began looking for an empty or partially empty compartment to store his things so he could join in with the celebratory mood that pervaded the hallway.

He found an empty compartment about halfway down the alley of the car he was in. While he was in the middle of attempting to heave his trunk onto the rack above his seat, the train whistle blew; it was about to depart. James quickly shoved the trunk onto the shelf and headed for the window. The cacophony of celebration out in the hallway had quieted down and, as James stuck his head out the window, he realised part of the reason. All along the train, students hung out of windows waving to the people left behind on the platform. James quickly located his parents and waved enthusiastically as the train began pulling away. His parents, his father's arm slung around his mother's shoulder in a comforting gesture, waved back.

He didn't wait until the platform was out of sight before pulling his head back into the train. A knock had sounded only about half a minute after the train had begun departing and James pulled his head back in to address the knock.

Standing at the door, wearing impeccable dress robes was a boy about his age. The boy had long, shaggy hair and dark eyes. He held himself with a slight air of superiority. James momentarily wondered if the boy was possibly a few years older than him and knew that James was only a first year. Then it hit James; he had met this boy before. It had been at Madame Malkin's, while James was getting fitted for his robes. Though, as much as he searched his mind, he couldn't for the life of him remember the other boy's name.

"Can I sit in here?" they boy asked, eyeing the nearly empty compartment. James, who had been excited about meeting and interacting with people his own age, was instantly excited.

"If you can find room," James joked before standing to help the other boy stow his trunk and other belongings on the rack above. The other boy, whom James had assumed came from a high-brow pureblood family based on his clothing and posture, collapsed onto a seat across from James. He spread his legs out in a comfortable manner, basically letting them go akimbo. In that moment, the boy looked the complete opposite of a high-brow individual.

"I'm Sirius, by the way. This is my first year. How about you?" the boy asked.

"James," he responded, "James Potter. I'm a first year as well. We've actually met before. At Madame Malkin's." James hedged, hoping that the other boy would remember him. They hadn't really interacted, but James still hoped he'd made some sort of impression on the other boy.

"Right!" Sirius exclaimed. "We got fitted for robes together." As soon as he said the words, his face reddened, and he looked away from James' eyes. James thought it was strange but decided to change the subject before he lost this potential friend.

"Are you excited about starting?" James sat a little forward in anticipations of the other boy's answer.

"I've been waiting for this day for quite some time. Glad to be heading off to school." Sirius' voice was excited, but there was also a slight edge to it. He only briefly looked back up at James before dropping his gaze once more. James thought there might be something more to what he was saying, the reason why he was glad perhaps. However, he didn't push the other boy on the matter.

"I packed a brand new deck of cards. Want to play a game?" James asked, pulling out the cards from his pocket. Sirius smiled in response and sat up. James quickly dealt cards and the game began. James loved exploding snap because if they didn't move quickly enough, the cards could explode and start small fires. It made a simple card game much more exciting. The excitement quickly began to build and, with each turn and each explosion, both boys became increasingly rowdy.

A smile spread across James' face. _This_ had been what he'd been hoping for at Hogwarts. He loved his parents, truly believed he'd had a spectacular upbringing, but he still felt as if something was missing. He was an only child, raised by elderly parents in a large country estate. His family was either much older or much younger than him. He rarely spent time in the nearby village, a result of his parents' abundant caution. He was their miracle child, the child they never thought they'd have. They ensured he was continually safe and kept close.

However, all this resulted in James spending a fair amount of time alone. For years he'd desperately wanted a friend, a playmate his age to keep him company. It was with this desire that he turned his attention to his acceptance to Hogwarts, and began tirelessly anticipating that day when he would board the train, head off to school, and make the best of friends.

Now, as he sat on the train as it barrelled north towards the Scottish Highlands, crazily playing exploding snap with Sirius, he felt his desire had been achieved. He may have just met Sirius only a few minutes before, but James could tell he and Sirius would be good friends. Their boisterous actions throughout the game made it clear to James. They were kindred souls, two young, outgoing boys. James may not have known much about Sirius, had felt he may be hiding things, but their similar personalities was enough for James in that moment.

He looked up at the other boy and met his eyes. In that moment, James felt that Sirius was thinking similar, if not the same, things. Both had independently decided they would become friends.

The moment was ended by a light, musical knock on the door. It was carefully, or perhaps hesitantly, opened and revealed a young red-haired girl standing in the doorway. Her hair fell a little past her shoulders and was held off her face with a light pink ribbon. She clutched a book to her chest, almost as a safety blanket. Her expression, though mostly her dazzling green eyes, was one of sadness and anger which James found confusing and out of place.

"Can I sit here? My old compartment was too full." Despite her expression, her tone was strong and forceful.

"You're the girl from the station," was all James was able to get out in response, still preoccupied with her out-of-place expression.

"Yes, I'm Lily. Thank you for helping us find our way through. Now, may I sit here?" Her tone was impatient and James simply nodded in agreement that she may, indeed, join the boys in the compartment. She sat down in a seat by the window and gazed out of it, no longer acknowledging either James or Sirius. The boys turned back to each other. Sirius shrugged and then the pair returned to their rowdy game of exploding snap.

* * *

James and Sirius were in the middle of an extremely enthusiastic game of exploding snap, rapidly playing cards, shouting and exclaiming as they did so. They were so wrapped up in their game that they barely recognized or paid any attention, to the entry of a skinny, long-haired boy already in his school robes. The little attention that James did pay to the boy was a result of the fact that they were barely out of London and still had several hours before they arrived at school and needed robes. However, James believed that the boy, much like himself really, was simply excited to be starting school. He then paid the boy no more attention and focused on the game.

The boy sat across from the girl, Lily, and had a quite conversation. Both Sirius and James ignored the other two. Then, suddenly, the boy exclaimed, his voice filled with uncontained enthusiasm. Sirius and James left their cards alone and began to eavesdrop.

"You'd better be in Slytherin," the boy spoke. James turned up his nose at the suggestion and turned to look at his companion. Sirius had stiffened slightly at the mention of Slytherin. James thought it was a slightly exaggerated reaction; James hated Slytherin too, but he didn't think the mere mention of someone wanting to be in Slytherin would make his go rigid. He filed the reaction away to discuss with Sirius at a later date, then turned to the other two.

"Slytherin?" James asked, his tone surprised and filled with incredulous disbelief. Out of the corner of his eye he saw Sirius relax slightly. "Who wants to be in Slytherin? I think I'd leave, wouldn't you?" Here James turned to Sirius. The long-haired boy had returned to his at-ease lounging position. James was smiling at him, looking for enthusiastic agreement. He spoke without returning James smile, which made James a little worried about what he was going to say.

"My whole family have been in Slytherin."

"Blimey," James responded, without missing a beat, "and I thought you seemed all right!" James' tone was light and joking. He'd been expecting something a lot worse, like Sirius revealing that he wanted to be in Slytherin himself. The fact that Sirius' lineage was so firmly routed in Slytherin did not taint James' opinion of the other boy. A large smile broke across Sirius' face.

"Maybe I'll break the tradition," he spoke, hope and also mischievousness filling his voice.

The small group of four first years then lapsed into a brief conversation about which house they wanted to be in. James announced he wanted to be in Gryffindor, which elicited an excited reaction from his new friend.

The other boy, the one already in his school robes, made a disparaging noise when James made his proclamation. Instantly, James and Sirius turned on the boy, whom Lily had referred to as Severus, mocking him and taunting him. Lily, acting as Severus' protector, quickly and angrily stood and, still being taunted by the boys, pulled her friend out of the compartment.

Sirius and James cackled in joy, even after the compartment door had been slammed shut. James, who did not consider himself a bully or a mean person, justified his cruel actions in a variety of ways. Firstly, Severus had started it. James and Sirius had been friendly discussing houses before Severus chose to insult James. He had simply been standing up for his future house, the same house that Potters had been sorted into for years. Secondly, anyone willingly choosing or even openly desiring to be placed into Slytherin was not a good person. Slytherin was a house of superiority and hatred; only evil seeds went into that house. Finally, neither he nor Sirius had said anything nasty, terrible, or disparaging. It was playful mocking, not hateful mocking. They hadn't done anything wrong.

The two new friends spent the remainder of the train ride in excited, friendly conversation about themselves and their hopes for their year at Hogwarts. They also played several more games of exploding snap and other magical card games. Finally, as the sun was setting over the Scottish Highlands, the train pulled into Hogsmeade Station. James turned to Sirius, an excited smile on his face.

"Here we go!" he exclaimed.


	7. Chapter 6: The Sorting

**Chapter Six**

**Sorting**

* * *

_You go out on Friday night/ I stay in but that's alright/ Because I have found a clique to call my own_

_~Good Charlotte_

* * *

"Here we go!" James exclaimed to Sirius as the Hogwarts Express pulled in to Hogsmeade Station. James turned to look out the window, trying to catch his first glimpse of Hogwarts Castle, but apparently, the train station was a fair distance away from the castle. A little crestfallen, James turned back to the others. The three other occupants of the compartment had all stood and begun to collect their things. It was time to get off the train.

"How do you think we get to the castle?" Lily, the red-haired muggle born girl James had helped find the platform asked her friend, Snivellus or whatever he was called. James was a little surprised to hear the same level of excitement in Lily's voice as he felt. He liked this girl.

"It's boats for first years, horseless carriages for everyone else," Sirius responded, though he didn't turn to look at either Lily or her friend. Instead, he quickly exited the compartment and made his way into the crowd of other students trying to make their way off the train. James hurried after his friend, not wanting to leave Sirius lest he somehow get lost in the crowd.

"How'd you know it's boats?" James asked once he'd met back up with Sirius. His parents had told him a fair amount of Hogwarts lore, but this was one part they'd never seemed to talk about.

"My dad has a weird obsession with the boats. Apparently, they were one of his favourite parts of Hogwarts, which tells you how much fun he had at school." Sirius responded. The two boys had made their way out of the train and onto the platform. The older students were, almost lemming-like, heading in the same direction off the platform. James turned to his new friend, asking if they should go the same way. Sirius nodded in response and the two quickly joined the group.

"Firs' years!" a loud, booming voice rang out over the din of conversation that pervaded the platform. "Firs' years this way!"

James turned to Sirius; the other boy just shrugged, saying that he wasn't sure what was going on. However, they quickly decided that it would probably be best to follow the loud booming voice. It seemed like it had some authority.

They quickly came across a very large man standing away from the rest of the crowd. A small group of students, all about the same height as James, and looking a combination of either anxious or nervous, stood around him.

"Firs' years!" the tall man yelled out again, trying to corral all the first years in one spot. James took the opportunity to scope out his fellow first year students. James' mother had always told him to not judge a book by its cover, or a person by your first impression, but from what James could see, the group of boys and girls who would be his classmates for the next seven years were less than impressive. Aside from Sirius and Snivellus, most of the first years looked like they were ready to faint or like they'd rather be anywhere else than their current location. Hopefully, there would be some more people willing to go o adventures and cause a little mayhem.

"All righ' Firs' Years! Gather round! We'll be takin' the boats into Hogwarts. There's only four to a boat. Watch yer step! Also, keep yer hands and feet in the boat" the large man said, motioning over to a collection of small boats that were moored on the edge of a large body of water not too far from where they were standing. The small group slowly picked their way towards the water's edge, and James felt his anticipation growing. It was only a matter of moments before he would finally set his eyes on Hogwarts.

"Hey! Sirius, right?" a sharp, almost birdlike voice called from behind James and Sirius. The two boys turned around to see a small girl with dark hair and bright green eyes. James didn't recognize her, but from the jovial smile that crossed Sirius' face, it appeared the other boy did. James felt his heart flutter, worried that Sirius had already made another friend and, now that they had reconnected, Sirius would have no further need of James.

"Yeah. Moira, was it?" Sirius asked in response. The girl smiled, sticking close to James and Sirius and getting in their boat alongside them. "Did you end up getting that broom? Did your mum buy your story?" Sirius asked. James assumed that, much like him and Sirius, this girl and Sirius met at Diagon Alley, in the broom store to be precise.

"No. She thought it was too expensive. Hey, did you know that apparently there's a giant squid that lives in this lake?" Moira seemed a little uncomfortable to be talking about her family, and quickly changed the subject. James made a note of her behavior.

"A giant squid? Where'd you here that?" Sirius asked, his tone jokingly incredulous. It was clear that, despite his father's apparent love of the first year boat ride, he had never mentioned the presence of a giant squid. Moira looked Sirius dead in the eye, clearly showing that his haughty demeanour meant nothing to her.

"My older sister saw it three years ago on her boat trip," Moira responded. She took a step closer to Sirius; they were now so close that their noses were only a few inches away from each other. James wasn't sure if they were going to kiss or start a fight. Either way, he felt he needed to intervene.

"Okay you two. Let's see who's right and get on the boat. I'm sure if there is a squid, we'll see it!" James responded, grabbing Sirius' sleeve and pulling him towards an unoccupied boat. Moira, a smirk on her face, followed suit.

* * *

The boats glided seamlessly across the lake. Ripples and the wake of the other boats seemed not to affect the boat as it moved towards Hogwarts castle. James, Sirius and Moira spent most of the trip hanging over the edge of the boat, gazing at ,and occasionally poking, the water. At the mention of the giant squid and the potential of a mystery to solve, James had completely forgotten his anticipation at seeing Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. He missed his first look at the castle, but he was almost positive he saw a giant tentacle moving through the water beneath his boat. Sirius says he didn't see anything, but James knows what he saw.

Finally, the boats began to slow and headed towards a crevasse in the rocky ledge upon which the castle sat. James and Sirius turned their attention to their voyage and James got his first, very quick sight of the castle before they were too close to the rocks to see much more. The crevasse loomed large and, at first, James wasn't certain that the boats would fit through, the opening looked quite small, but each sailed through without a problem.

In only a few moments time, James would be standing before the entirety of the Hogwarts student body and be sorted into a house. His entire family had been in Gryffindor, he was certain he would be joining them. There wasn't another house that he even considered. It was Gryffindor or bust!

The boats came to a stop and the first years disembarked. They quickly grabbed their belongings and headed after the giant man towards a set of large, ornate doors. Standing before them was an elderly man. He had short, ear-length silver hair and warm brown eyes. His robes were a dark midnight blue, denoting that he was most likely a member of Ravenclaw house.

"Professor Greensleigh," the giant man spoke in welcome to the man standing before the door.

"Hagrid," the man responded, "pleasant trip, I assume." Hagrid nodded gruffly before motioning to collection of students standing behind him.

"I got all the firs' years here, safe and sound, Professor." The giant man, Hagrid, then left the group standing before the aged Professor Greensleigh. James looked up expectantly. The Professor cleared his throat before launching into a speech of welcome.

"Good evening, boys and girls. Welcome to Hogwarts School of Witchcraft and Wizardry. This place will be your home for the next seven years as you explore and learn about magic. Now, tonight is all about celebrating, which begins with the traditional start-of-term feast. It is a time to enjoy yourselves with your fellow students before the rigors of your schoolwork begin. Before the eating can commence, however, each of you will each be sorted into one of the four houses. Think of the houses as your family while you are at Hogwarts, as you will be spending essentially all of your time with the members of your house.

"These houses are Gryffindor, Hufflepuff, Ravenclaw, and Slytherin. Each is named after one of the founders of our great school and represents traits that each founder held dear. Your house will not only be your family but share in your triumphs and losses. Triumphs will win your house points, while losses will lose points. The House with the most points at the end of the year will win the House cup, a great honour indeed.

"Now, without further ado, let the Sorting Ceremony begin!" Professor Greensleigh finished with a flourish and the doors before him opened up. Slowly, the first years made their way into Hogwarts.

* * *

Before the students entered the Great Hall and were sorted, they were led into the entrance hall. They entered through a side door, barely visible to a passer-by. The hall was very grand, with a high ceiling and an elegant chandelier blazing brightly in the middle. On either end of the hall were two sets of large, ornate doors. They were engraved with the Hogwarts crest and motto. One led back out to the grounds, empty and darkened. The other led towards the Great Hall and the rest of their lives.

The group turned towards to doors to the Great Hall. Excited voices sounded from behind the wood. It was a cacophony of noise. Voices, cheers, ruffling, and scraping denoted the fact that there was a large group gathered. The pressure mounted; they were only a few steps away from the Sorting Ceremony.

Students, most likely muggleborns, grew increasingly nervous, wondering what the ceremony entailed. Some of those with magical blood began to stress over which house they would be sorted into, really feeling the family pressure that the selection of houses inspired. Not being sorted into the correct house could mean disinheritance. It was all very momentous.

Finally, the doors opened. The loud noises that had been emanating from the Hall ceased as the entire student body turned to watch the first years enter. The students were seated at four long tables, separated into their houses. The Professors sat at a fifth long table at the front of the Hall. And, placed before the Professors' table were a single wooden stool and a beaten and worn old hat. Whispers quickly broke out amongst some of the first years, obviously wondering what was going on with the hat.

The first years gathered before the stool. Professor Greensleigh went to stand in front of the front table. The rest of the school turned to look at the hat. Everyone was silent. A few of the muggleborn first years looked more and more confused and concerned. Finally, the hat began to move. A rip near the brim widened and a melody issued from the hole. The magical hat was singing.

Gather round, young boys and girls,

I've got a tale to tell

Of important this and that's

So, listen to it well.

I may look too plain and simple,

But looks can sure deceive.

From me your place at this fine school,

You will, in time receive.

I will gaze deep into your minds

And see what's hidden there.

All your secrets and desires

Before me are laid bare.

Four houses you will have to choose

Each unique, and old, and grand.

They represent the Founders four.

Greatest wizards in the land!

One such house is Gryffindor.

The bravest of them all.

With courage, heart, and chivalry,

Gryffindors stand tall.

Another house is Hufflepuff

Where loyalty is key.

Kindness, patience, and hard work

Make it the place to be.

Or possibly in Ravenclaw

Is where you'll find your place.

Such witty, wise, and learned ones

Always with a book before their face.

And finally, there is Slytherin

Where dwell quite cunning creatures.

They will achieve all their desires

And get around their teachers.

So, step on up, and put me on

And let me look inside.

There is no place for you to go,

Nowhere that you can hide.

You will be sorted, here and now

I promise to be fast

And once I've gone and sorted you

At home you'll be at last.

The hat finished its song and then became motionless once more. The hall quickly burst out in applause, James enthusiastically joining them. Each year, the hat started the Sorting Ceremony with a song lauding the traits of the four houses. It was his father's favourite part of the year, and now James could see why.

The applause died away and Professor Greensleigh stepped forward, a scroll clutched tightly in his hand. He cleared his throat with a gruff cough and the hall was once again silent.

"When you hear your name, come forward and put on the hat. You'll be sorted and then you can join your new house. Once all of you have found your place, Headmaster Dumbledore will say a few words."

"Abernathy, Kevin," Greensleigh called. James watched the boy names Kevin, a meek looking boy with blond hair, make his way up to the stool and have the hat placed on his head. It slipped down to his ears and the gathered students held their breaths.

"Hufflepuff!" the Sorting Hat called out. Kevin jumped off the stool and quickly hurried toward the applauding table.

"Black, Sirius," Professor Greensleigh called. Sirius took a deep breath and stepped forward. James gave him a thumbs up and then began to worry. He was sure he would have no problems making other friends, but he really wanted his first friend at Hogwarts to be in the same house as him.

The hat was silent for what felt like a lifetime before it finally shouted out, "Gryffindor!"

The proclamation of Sirius' house was met with startled silence. Slytherin House looked absolutely shocked, mouths dropped open and eyes bugged out. Sirius slipped the hat off his head and made his way to Gryffindor's table. The students then seemed to come out of their stupor and, Gryffindor table especially, began to cheer and applaud. James applauded right along with the table and then turned back to the Sorting Hat, awaiting his turn to be proclaimed a Gryffindor.

* * *

James sat right where he belonged. It felt like home. It felt absolutely right. Only a few minutes prior, his name had been called and he'd confidently made his way to be sorted. He hadn't really been worried. Potters had been in Gryffindor for generations. There were very few individuals with the Potter name not in Gryffindor. James was going to be in Gryffindor.

So, when the Sorting Hat proclaimed James Potter as a Gryffindor, he was not in the least bit surprised. He confidently, and maybe with a slight swagger, crossed the hall to the loudly cheering table. He took his rightful place beside his new friend Sirius Black. He turned and nodded to Sirius, acknowledging that they'd both gotten exactly what they wanted.

"Gryffindor," James commented, a wide smile on his face. Sirius returned the smile. The pair then turned back to the sorting. There were only a few more first years left. One of them, looking extremely nervous and dejected, was the boy from the train, the one they had bothered about wanting to be in Slytherin. James turned to his right and saw, looking relatively sad and upset herself, the red-headed girl who was with the boy.

'Lily,' James thought, remembering her name from their encounter back at King's Cross station. She and her greasy haired friend had been planning to be in the same house, Slytherin. But now, they would both have to be in Gryffindor, which seemed very unlikely. That boy was definitely not Gryffindor material. Even just looking at him, James felt like he was slimy, a clear-cut trait of Slytherin.

'If he gets into Gryffindor,' James thought. He couldn't even complete that thought because it was so ridiculous. That nervous, slippery, slimy boy –Snivellus- belonged with the equally slippery and slimy Slytherins.

Scott, Moira was called, and James briefly recognized the girl that had shared their boat trip over with them. She was sorted into Slytherin, which James found a little strange. Moira had seemed like an alright girl. He hadn't suspected she'd be a Slytherin.

"Snape, Severus!" Professor Greensleigh called. James watched him carefully. He made his way to the hat, his movements hesitant and, in James' estimation, fairly snakelike. He sat on the stool, had the hat placed on his greasy black hair, and waited. James knew that the Hat was delving into Snivellus' brain to try and sort him. Perhaps the hat would even hold a brief conversation with him.

James' sorting had been relatively brief. The Sorting Hat had quickly picked up on James' naturally courageous personality. It had seen that, while James was very smart and able with magic, and extremely loyal towards his friends and family, courage was the biggest part of James. It had taken the hat about 20 seconds to figure this all out.

However, as James focused in on Snivellus' sorting, he realised that the hat seemed to be taking an inordinate amount of time. His father had told him about Hatstalls, where the Sorting Hat couldn't decide which house to place you in to; your sorting would take minutes as opposed to seconds. This sorting was looking much like that, when finally, the slit just above the brim of the hat opened and spoke.

"Slytherin!"

James let out a sigh of relief. As the time had extended on, James had become more and more concerned that Snape might be sorted into Gryffindor. If that were to happen James would have been forced to essentially re-evaluate his entire world view. Thankfully, that didn't happen. James settled back into his calm, confident emotional state.

However, in that moment, James made a mental note to keep a close eye on Snivellus. Something about him set James on edge.


	8. Chapter 7: And So It Begins

**Chapter Seven**

**And So It Begins**

* * *

_The beginning is the most important part of the work_

_~Plato_

* * *

The Sorting Ceremony ended when 'Zeyers, Penelope' was sorted into Hufflepuff. After Snape had been sorted though, James hadn't really paid too much more attention. A few other girls were sorted into Gryffindor; all the boys who would be James' classmates had been sorted before him. Along with Sirius Black, who James knew was going to be a very good friend, two other boys had joined Gryffindor. One was a small, mousy boy who had initially looked nervous and was then relieved when the Sorting Hat had declared him a Gryffindor. The second boy was a tall, skinny boy. He seemed to have more confidence than the mousy boy, but there was still something about the taller boy that made James think he was nervous about the whole experience.

With the sorting finished, James expected a dinner to begin. However, instead of turning to their plates, many of the upperclassman remained looking at the head table. James turned to look that way as well, wondering what was to come next. As Penelope took her seat, an older man sitting in the middle of the table stood. James was almost positive that he was Professor Albus Dumbledore, Headmaster of Hogwarts, but having never met the man he couldn't be 100% certain. The older wizard opened his arms in a welcoming gesture and smiled. His gaze quickly flitted across the sea of students.

"To the first year students, Hogwarts, and I as the Headmaster, bid you a very warm welcome. To the older students, I bid you a kind welcome back. I can tell that this year will be a great and adventurous time for one and all. Now, as I gaze out at all of your faces, I am reminded that now is not the time for grand speech making. It is, I believe, the time for eating and friendly discussion! So, without further ado, please join me in the traditional Welcome Feast!" Headmaster Dumbledore raised his hands once more as he finished his words.

Dishes appeared on every table and the large ones in the center were quickly filled with food. James stared in awe at the sight of the huge feast. His mother, especially in the last few months, had begun preparing larger and larger feasts for the Potter family, but this was by far, the largest amount of food James had ever seen in his life. Even a Potter Christmas party, that usually drew at least 100 guests never had this much food.

It looked like a traditional English feast, with all the favourites on plates along the table. James quickly filled his plate, wanting to try as many of the dishes as he possibly could. He then quickly dug into the meal, excited by the tastes that filled his mouth.

After a few bites of the amazingly delicious food, James decided that he should take the time to meet his fellow first-year Gryffindors. After all, they would be spending the next seven years together; they would have to get to know each other eventually.

"I'm James," he said warmly to the boy sitting across from him, "and this is Sirius. Pretty awesome that we've been sorted into Gryffindor, huh? I mean, it is the best house!" Both James and Sirius then looked expectantly at the boy sitting across from them, waiting for his response.

"Yeah, awesome," he returned after swallowing the food in his mouth. He had responded to the question, but only barely. James found that fact strange. Did this boy not want to talk to James? They would be staying in the same room every school day for the next seven years. They would have nearly all of their classes together; this year they would have all of their classes together. Not knowing each other would make things extremely awkward.

"My whole family's been in Gryffindor for years, so it wasn't really that much of a surprise. How about yours? What house were they in?" James was unphased by the other boy's lack of desire for conversation. If he had to pull the information out of the other boy, he would.

James had to wait again while the other boy swallowed a large bite of food, having obviously believed that James would give up at his minimal words.

"My dad was in Gryffindor. He'll be happy I am too. My mum's a muggle so I do not think she will really care," the other boy responded. His tone was conversational but not overly friendly. James found it was a little weird that, after he had introduced both himself and Sirius, the other boy had not responded in kind. James made a mental note to ask the other boy what his name was; he'd missed it during the sorting having had no real interest in this boy until he realised they would be in the same house.

"That's pretty cool. What's your Dad's name. Maybe my family knows him," James had to go about asking for the other boy's name in an indirect way, feeling awkward that he had already had a fair amount of conversation with him but not having his name.

"My dad?" the other boy asked, surprised and hesitant in response to the question. James thought the reaction was strange but didn't think too much of it. He didn't really know this boy, maybe he was a hesitant individual. "My dad is Lyall Lupin." The other boy then looked down at his plate and refused to make eye contact. James decided he wouldn't get any more out of the boy at that moment and turned to the other people around him.

"What do your parents think about all this?" James asked the redheaded girl a few people over from him. Lily. He remembered her name. "Being muggles do they have opinions about houses? Do they even know about the different houses?" However, Lily, who was focused on her dinner, simply ignored James' question. He felt a little crestfallen but decided that everyone was too busy eating to talk and if he tried again later, he would surely have better results.

Trying to appear upbeat, James tucked into his food, enjoying the tastes and textures of the well-prepared feast.

* * *

Dinner slowly blended into dessert. Eventually, the platters holding hot, savoury, and salty food stopped refilling themselves. They then filled with various sweets and treats. James' eyes grew large at the selection that lay before him. He had a fairly large sweet tooth and always favoured dessert. He wished he hadn't eaten quite so much at dinner, but still took a few sweets. If need be, he could squirrel them away for later.

As James ate his sweets, he took a moment to observe his fellow Gryffindor first years. He started with the girls. There were four of them. The first girl he noticed, as if his eyes were drawn to her, was Lily. James spent maybe a second more looking at Lily, watching her enjoy her sweets and hold a friendly discussion with a few of the other girls sitting around him. Sitting beside Lily was a dark haired girl with a pinched expression. She sat tall and rigid, as if she'd been taught to sit that way her entire life. James thought that she must have been a pureblood from an ancient wizarding family. Then there were two brunettes; one with a confident air about her. The other brunette was much mousier and quite. She had large wide eyes that seemed to shimmer with enjoyment at everything around her.

The girls were all busy in their own conversations amongst each other. James figured that now would not be a good time to try and get to know these girls. Interjecting into their conversation would not be beneficial. Instead, he turned to the boys. There was Sirius, sitting beside him hurriedly stuffing pasties and pies into his mouth. It seemed to James like Sirius had never had a sweet in his life, which seemed strange. James then turned his attention across the table. There were two other boys sitting there, though he hadn't initially noticed the second of the two. The first was the boy he had talked to at the start of dinner, the one who hadn't really accepted James' attempts at conversation. The other boy was so mousy and quiet, so unassuming that James hadn't even really noticed him initially. He had mousy brown hair and he seemed to be so nervous that he wouldn't look up from his plate.

James, feeling like this boy would be a potentially good friend. He looked so anxious and socially awkward that James was almost positive that if he reached out to this boy, he would not be rejected like he had been by the other boy in his year.

James was just about to introduce himself to the quiet, mousy boy when, suddenly, a hush fell over the crowd. The food that remained on the platters disappeared. James, and the rest of the Gryffindor table and the Great Hall, slowly turned towards the head table, certain that the changes had occurred because of a forthcoming speech. Dumbledore, his father explained, always gave a speech welcoming the students and commencing the new year. His first address had been a little short, James had thought. Now, it made sense. There was most likely a longer speech about to be made.

"Once again, welcome. I am looking forward to quite the amazing year with you all! Just a few reminders and statements about rules. The forest on the grounds is forbidden to all students, except with the express consent and supervision of a professor. I know it may be tempting to venture into its depths, but let me assure you, there are a great number of beasts that dwell in the forest that will kill you without a second thought.

"Jinxes, hexes, and other forms of magic are not to be used in corridors between classes. Practice of skills you have learned is strongly encouraged, but not on other students without their permission!" James frowned slightly at that rule. Not being able to use magic in the hallways would make it a lot harder to execute his plan of causing mischief and mayhem.

"Now that those rules have been explained, a few start of term remarks. For those who have just entered Hogwarts for the first time, know that you are a part of something quite special. For the next seven years, you will hone your magic and explore your boundaries. You will develop deep bonds and lifelong friendships. Your houses will become your families, the people that will make the journey with you.

"And with that, I dare say, it is time that you be off for bed. Prefects, if you will." Dumbledore motioned with his hands into the crowds, then returned to his seat. Slowly, students began to stand and trickle out of the Great Hall. James and Sirius, who hadn't said much to each other since dinner had started, quickly turned to each other. They, along with the rest of the first years, remained sitting and waited for the prefects to show up. They began talking about what Dumbledore could have meant by the beats that roamed the Forbidden Forest and ways they could get around the no mafic in the hallways rule.

Finally, a tall, fairly muscular guy and a stick thin girl with straight brown hair approached the awaiting Gryffindor first years. The boy had a warm smile on his face that continued up to his chocolate brown eyes. Instantly, James liked him. The girl, Patricia, on the other hand looked like she was judging each of them right then. Her expression was closed and haughty, the complete opposite of Frank.

"Hello, I'm Frank and this is Patricia. We are fifth year prefects and we'll be showing you up to the Gryffindor common room and dorms. We'll also tell you all you need to know about Gryffindor and Hogwarts. Ask any questions that come to mind! Now, shall we be off?" Frank's voice was cheerful and welcoming.

The first years all stood and followed Frank. James and Sirius walked directly behind Frank, peppering him with indiscriminate questions about what they'd be learning, what life was like in Gryffindor, and if Frank, who happened to be on the Gryffindor Quidditch team, had any tips on making the team. A first year hadn't made a house team in over fifty years, but both James and Sirius were determined that at least one of them would break the streak.

The small group made their way through the halls of Hogwarts. They ascended and descended several sets of stairs, some of them having moved and changed their final terminus. Finally, the group came to a halt in front of a large portrait. The hallways were lined with various paintings and portraits so at first James wasn't sure what was going on. What did a painting of an overweight woman have to do with them?

"Well, first years," Frank said, turning in a slow circle to face their direction. He had a strange glint in his eyes. "Beyond this door is the greatest common room in Hogwarts. It contains the best furniture, the warmest fire, the most comfortable beds, and, most importantly, the best people."

Frank stepped aside giving the group a good look at the portrait. James had distinctly heard the word door and so began trying to locate a door, or something that would pass as a door. Growing up in the magical world, James knew that wizards often hid things for security purposes. However, no matter where he looked, he couldn't find a thing like a door.

"Good evening," the portrait suddenly spoke. "Speak the password and enter the great Gryffindor dormitories!"

"The Fat Lady guards the entrance to the common room and dormitories. She requires a password, which changes every month or so. The new password will be posted on the bulletin board in the common room. The bulletin board will also hold any and all important notices so check it out every once and a while," Frank spoke in explanation. He smiled down at the first years, enjoying the little trick he'd played on them before continuing.

"Girls and boys dormitories are up separate staircases. They are rigged so boys can't go up to the girls, so don't even try. Your things have already been brought up, so you don't have to worry about that. Tomorrow at breakfast you will be given your class schedules so don't sleep too late and miss it."

Frank then turned back to the portrait of the Fat Lady.

"In omnia paratus!" Frank spoke in a clear and commanding voice. The Fat Lady nodded, accepting the password. The portrait then swung open, revealing a low entrance and a warm glow beyond. Frank stepped into the entrance and towards the common room. The first years followed, and Patricia brought up the rear.

James' mother and father had talked lovingly of the Gryffindor common room; the warm cozy space had been one of the many things that James had been looking forward too. The minute he stepped into the Gryffindor common room, he felt exactly like he thought and hoped he would. It was warm and homey with a crackling fire in the hearth and plushy comfortable furniture through the room.

"Girls' dorms are up those stairs," Frank spoke, motioning to one of the spiral staircases flanking the entrance. "Boys' are up the others. First year dorms are the third door up each flight. That's the tour. Feel free to explore your dorms and the common room. It's past curfew so exploring the castle at this time would result in a deduction of house points and a possible detention. My advice is stick to Gryffindor and explore elsewhere tomorrow.

"So, with that, I bid you goodnight. If you have any questions, please don't hesitate." Frank gave them one final smile, then turned and climbed the stairs to the boys' dormitories. James turned to Sirius, ready to decide what their next move was. One of the other two boys, the taller, thinner one, followed Frank up the stairs. The girls, already moving as one group, walked into the relatively empty common room and sat before the fire.

Sirius returned James' look and then the pair turned to the second boy who was standing, rather awkwardly, just behind the pair.

"Peter, right?" James asked warmly. The other boy, looking more and more awkward with each passing second, turned bright red and nodded instead of speaking. "I'm James and this is Sirius. We're both excited about being in Gryffindor. It seems like it is going to be pretty awesome, don't you think?"

Peter remained silent. James was instantly worried that his estimation of this boy had been wrong. Maybe he didn't want to get to know James, to be his friend. However, he refused to give up after such a small setback. He would befriend Peter, and the other boy who James was pretty sure was named Remus, even if it took him all year.


	9. Chapter 8: This Most Auspicious Meeting

**Chapter Eight**

**This Most Auspicious Meeting**

* * *

_Friendship is born at that moment when one person says to another, "What! You too? I thought I was the only one"_

_~C. S. Lewis_

* * *

The boys entered their dorm room and found it just as warm and welcoming as the common room below. There were four four-post beds spaced throughout the room, a trunk placed in front of each of them. The fourth boy in their year and house was already laid out on his bed, a book in front of his face. Sirius plopped down onto a four-post bed; James assumed it had been assigned to his friend because of the ornate trunk placed in front of it. Peter hoped onto his bed and looked around expectantly, obviously wonder what was going to happen next. James ignored the others around him and went over to his trunk.

He then began was busily digging through it, pulling out mementos and keepsakes. He began carefully placing each one in a special place around his bed, making Hogwarts feel a little like the second home he believed it was to be. When he was done at last, he hopped onto his bed and turned to face the room. Sirius lay back on his bed but turned to face James. Peter excitedly sat on his own bed and stared at James. Remus continued to read his book.

"So," James spoke into the silence, "I think we should take this time, before school starts in earnest, to get to know each other. We'll be sleeping in the same room for the next seven years; we should at least be on friendly terms." He then looked around to take the pulse of the room.

Sirius shrugged in a noncommittal fashion. James interpreted the motion to mean that the boy felt that it was a good idea, but he wasn't as enthusiastic about it as James. Peter nodded enthusiastically, clearly a little desperate to make a connection with James. Remus continued to read; he didn't even lower it the tiniest bit.

"I'll go first," Sirius spoke up. He slowly sat up and faced the room. "I'm Sirius Black, of the 'Ancient House of Blacks'. I'm the first person in my family to be sorted into Gryffindor. My entire family is pureblood, a proud fact for many of them. I, personally, could care less. I have a younger brother, Regulus. He'll be here next year. My favourite Quidditch team is the Kenmare Kestrels and I would like to play chaser here at Hogwarts." Sirius looked up at the ceiling, obviously trying to see if he could come up with some more information. However, James was far too excited and jumped in to introduce himself.

"I'm James Potter. I grew up in Godric's Hallow. Most of my family has been in Gryffindor for centuries. I'm an only child, have a few cousins though. My family's also fairly pureblood; there are rumours we may be related to the Peverell's. I happily cheer for Puddlemere and, likewise will attempt to be names chaser on the house team.

"You next, Peter?" James finished with a winning smile at Peter. He had been hanging onto James' every word, but now that he was in the spotlight, he looked like he wanted to run, or hurl.

"I'm- uh- Peter Pettigrew," he began. His voice was soft and had a slight waver in it. He was also looking down at his hands as he spoke. "My dad was in Gryffindor and he'll be very- uh- happy that I'm- uh- also in it. Uh- I like Quidditch and- uh- Puddlemere. But uh- I don't- I don't play. Not very good on a broom." Peter spoke the last bit in almost a whisper and both James and Sirius had to lean in to hear him.

Even when he had finished speaking, Peter didn't look up. James smiled extremely brightly, though Peter didn't notice. He then got up and stood in front of Peter's bed. Finally, James reached over and placed a comforting hand on Peter's knee. This caused Peter, red faced, to look up and was met with the full force of James' smile. The obvious displays of affection seemed to revive the sandy-haired boy, and Peter once again resumed his awe-filled staring.

"You just need more flying practice is all," James added comfortingly. Peter looked like he could kiss James. Then, having done his duty to comfort his new friend, James turned to the last boy in the room. He still lay, almost motionless, on his bed. His back was still clutched tightly in his hands. James wondered if Remus had any awareness of the rest of the room.

Wanting to make a sure he was making an impression, James moved to stand in front of Remus. He didn't speak; he simply stood at the foot of the bed and stared down Remus. It was several, slightly awkward moments of silence, but eventually Remus slowly lowered his book and looked up at James.

"Can I help you with something?" Remus asked with genuine concern, not the contempt that such a question usually contained. James smiled warmly at him.

"I'm James Potter, one of your fellow roommates. This is Sirius Black and Peter Pettigrew." James motioned to each boy as he introduced him. "We were just introducing ourselves and saying a few things about us. Figured we should at least by acquaintances if we're stuck with each other for the next seven years. We've all gone, so now it's just you."

Remus remained silent for a while; James continued smiling at him. Finally, James seemed to wear down the other boy. Remus sighed and marked his place in his book with his finger.

"I'm Remus Lupin," he spoke. He seemed to hope that would be enough for James. He had no such luck; James continued smiling down at him. "My father was a Gryffindor; my mother was a muggle. I have no siblings and I'm not a big fan of Quidditch."

Remus then returned to his book, not even looking back at James. James stared, slightly incredulous. Despite his book reading, Remus had hit all the points the others had. Apparently, he hadn't been as aloof as he appeared.

However, after the initial shock wore off, he returned to his bed, content at what he had managed to accomplish. The rest of the night was spent with the boys discussing themselves and their interests. There was a brief argument about which Quidditch team was better, but otherwise the boys got along extremely well. Remus, for his part, continued reading. Occasionally, James would lob a question Remus' way in an attempt to draw him in. Occasionally, Remus would answer the question, but mostly he just continued reading.

When the foursome finally called it a night it was very late.

* * *

The first morning at Hogwarts dawned bright and, in the opinion of the very tired James, much too early. Maybe they'd stayed up too late last night, but James didn't really regret that. He'd never had someone to talk to late into the night before and the experience created a warm, fulfilling glow within him.

Finally, the excitement that the prospect of learning magic brought won out over James' tiredness and the boy pulled himself out of bed. He found Sirius in a similar state, his previously perfectly coifed hair sticking out at odd angles. James, whose hair was normally on the messy side, assumed he looked a lot worse. The two boys smiled at each other, still slightly sleepy, before they got out of bed and began to prepare for the day. Peter was already awake and ready, quietly sitting on his bed waiting for the others. Remus was already gone, his bed neatly made.

After about twenty minutes, Sirius and James, with Peter trailing after, made it down to breakfast in the Great Hall. They found Remus sitting about halfway down the table, the seats around him empty. He had a plate full of food and a book open before his nose. Everything about his posture screamed 'closed off' and 'stay away.' Normally, James would have confidently walked over and sat beside Remus, but Sirius was obviously much too hungry because he sat down at the first available spot. He then quickly began shovelling food into his mouth. James temporarily admitted defeat and sat beside Sirius, with Peter joining them.

About halfway through breakfast, a witch with an emerald robe and spectacles began moving throughout the Gryffindor table. James guessed she was the head of Gryffindor but wasn't sure on her name. She stopped at each student and handed him or her a piece of parchment. It wasn't long before she stood before James, Sirius, and Peter.

"Here are your schedules boys. First class starts in twenty minutes; you better not be late." She gave a knowing look at James and Sirius, like she was expecting them to be late for some reason. She then continued on down the table. When she reached Remus, who was sitting alone a few seats away, James noticed that she gave him two pieces of parchment. The schedule and something else. James was instantly curious. However, he wasn't given long to dwell on it.

"Shall we? Wouldn't want to be late for Charms, would we?" Sirius exclaimed, his plate cleaned and a look of eager anticipation on his face. James nodded, quickly flinging his bag over his shoulder.


	10. Chapter 9: The Slimy & the Incomparable

**Chapter Nine**

**The Slimy & The Incomparable**

* * *

_Men of lofty genius when they are doing the least work are the most active_

_~Leonardo Da Vinci_

* * *

James and Sirius walked into their first ever magical class, wide smiles spread across their faces. Peter quietly followed behind the pair. Their great, grand adventure was finally beginning. James had stared, wide-eyed with amazement, as his parents performed even the simplest household spells. Despite being surrounded by magic on a daily basis, not actually being allowed to perform any spells kept a certain glow about it all. Now, with their walk into the classroom, the barrier of performance would finally be removed.

They could now practice magic!

Other first years, Gryffindors and Hufflepuffs, were seated throughout the classroom. A steady hum of conversation filled the room as the others excitedly talked about what was in store for them. They all looked just as excited as James felt. All except one lone, hunched figure sitting in the corner. He was well apart from everyone and staring at the table in front of him.

As soon as James spotted him, he quickly moved in his direction. James had grown up essentially alone; he had come to Hogwarts with every intention of making as many friends as possible. Sirius and Peter had been relatively easy to befriend; the third Gryffindor first year seemed to be putting up more of a fight.

Almost from the start, Remus had been distancing himself. He hadn't said a word at dinner and barely participated in James' get-to-know-you chat. Now, just like at breakfast, he was sitting almost as far from everyone else as he could. James saw it as a challenge, one he was most certainly going to meet.

"Mind if we sit here?" James asked Remus. The other boy slowly raised his head and took in James, Sirius, and Peter. He paused, looking reluctant, but eventually nodded. James readily took the seat right next to Remus, and Peter and Sirius followed suit.

"So, which class are you looking forward to the most?" James asked, smiling warmly at Remus. The other boy just continued looking at his hands. James smiled wider. "You can ignore me all you want, but I'm not going to stop. I think we could be great friends, and I'm not going to stop asking you questions and talking to you. You might as well get used to it and answer my questions."

Remus continued to stare at his hands, but a smile began to spread across his face. James could feel he was getting somewhere and was about to continue to push Remus, when a short man wandered into the classroom. He stopped at the front of the room and glanced around.

"Welcome, first years," he spoke, "This is Charms and I am Professor Flitwick." James sighed, upset that the progress he'd made had been halted. He shot Remus a look that made it clear that he would not be giving up, then focused on the professor.

Professor Flitwick, as he'd introduced himself, was quite on the short side. Standing in front of his desk, as he was now, made it clear that he was barely taller than it. He had very white hair, much like Dumbledore, but his beard was significantly shorter. He had on periwinkle robes that James had a sneaking suspicion were actually made for a child.

"Charms is a vital magical practice. Throughout the rest of your life, you will rely on the skills and knowledge you gain from this class more than any other. Many of my colleagues will disagree with me on that point, but I assure you it is the truth. Just think of your parents around the house; which form of magic do they use the most?" Professor Flitwick paused in his speech to let his 'revelation' sink in. James had already figured that Charms would be his most practical class; that didn't mean it would be his favourite or the one he found the most interesting.

"Now, to see where you all are," Professor Flitwick pulled out his wand and waved it around. Glasses of water with ice in them appeared before each student. "You will attempt to perform a simple cooling charm. In order to do so, focus on the water and repeat the incantation.

Professor Flitwick produced a glass before himself as well.

"Frigus!" he spoke clearly. Almost instantly, the water in his glass froze solid. "Now, I'm not expecting your charm to be that strong. I will be quite satisfied, and you should too, if you are able to keep your ice cubes from melting for five minutes. We'll have a few minutes of practice and then I will go around and see how each of you are doing. Begin!"

James eagerly grabbed his wand and focused. He pictured his glass frozen just like Professor Flitwick's, and then spoke the incantation with the same confidence as the short professor.

"Frigus!"

Glee and pride filled James' being as the glass before him began to frost over slightly. It wasn't the solid ice of Flitwick's, but it was definitely colder than it had been only seconds before. Triumphant, he looked around to see how the others were doing. Sirius had achieved an almost identical result to James, with his glass just a little less frosty than the messy haired boy. Remus' glass was not visibly colder, but after watching the other boy's glass for several seconds, deemed the light brown haired boy successful. Peter, on the other hand, seemed to have not managed anything as his ice quickly melted.

"I think I'm quite charming, don't you?" Sirius asked, a sly smile on his face at his stupid joke. James laughed at his friend's joke before leaning back in his chair and observing the other students in the class. He, too, thought he was quite good at magic and was, also, quite charming.

* * *

By the end of class, James, Sirius, and Remus, and a smattering of Hufflepuffs had all managed to keep the ice in their glass solid. Peter, after about twenty attempts, had managed to set his glass on fire. James and Sirius had found it hilarious, especially when Professor Flitwick put it out from across the room by making a stream of water shoot from his wand. Remus, much to James' pleasure had also cracked a smile.

There was definitely potential there.

Professor Flitwick dismissed them after explaining they would continue on next day and setting practice of the charm for homework. James and Sirius left with Peter, playfully ribbing him still about his flaming glass of water. Peter was turning very red but seemed to be taking the playful antagonism fairly well.

The class quickly split in two, with the Hufflepuffs heading down one hallway and the Gryffindors down another. Now in the smaller group, James broke off from poking fun at Peter and lagged to the back of the group. Sirius and Peter followed suit. Quickly the female contingent of Gryffindor was leading the group with the four males at the back. Remus had exited the class last and had been hanging around the back before James slowed down to meet him.

"So, what do you think of Professor Flitwick and Charms?" James asked conversationally. He looked right at Remus when he spoke, indicating he was asking the thin, sandy haired boy the question. Remus ignored both the question and the look and continued walking through the hallway; his head was down, focused on the floor, and he clutched his Charms book tightly to his chest.

"I think he's probably got some amazing skills and he'll dazzle us with them at various points throughout the year. Leave us in awe or something." Sirius piped up when it became obvious that Remus wasn't going to offer his opinion.

"Oh," said James, pivoting his head to look at Sirius who was walking on his other side, "what makes you say that? I mean, he obviously needs to know what he's talking about in order to teach us and his frozen glass was pretty cool," James and Sirius both chuckled at the pun, "but why do you think he's like a savant or something?"

Sirius smiled mischievously and his face, which had been handsome before, only increased in attractiveness.

"Someone his height would need to have some mad skills in order to be taken seriously." It was a backhanded comment, praising his supposed skill while ridiculing his stature, and James enjoyed it all. He snorted in surprise at the comment and then heartily laughed at the humour. Peter laughed after James, having waited to see how the taller boy would respond. Out of the corner of his eye, James caught Remus' reaction. The thin boy looked as if he wanted to say something but stopped himself. James decided to pounce.

"Yes, Remus," he spun quickly to his other side and caught the aforementioned boy off guard, "did you have something to say. You should not feel the need to keep things to yourself. Friends won't judge."

Remus was momentarily stunned, probably by James' use of the word 'friends' to describe their relationship. Remus had barely spoken a word to the three of them and yet James, unilaterally, had decided and proudly declared that they were friends.

Before Remus could respond, the quartet, along with the rest of the Gryffindors arrived at their next class. James confidently strode in and sat at an empty table in the middle of the room. Sirius and Peter readily followed him and, much to James' pleasure, Remus took the empty seat to James' right.

* * *

Their class after Charms was Transfiguration. James' quickly found the idea of changing the appearance of objects, and even people, very fascinating. The only downside to the class was the professor. The same witch who had handed out their schedules that morning was also responsible for teaching them Transfiguration. She was a middle-aged witch named McGonagall, with her hair pulled into a tight bun and an almost omnipresent stern expression. She wore square glasses in front of her beady eyes. Professor McGonagall radiated strictness and gave James the impression that goofing around would not be tolerated in her class. For a boy who enjoyed a good joke or prank, he was sure that he would occasionally come into conflict with her.

Most of their first Transfiguration class consisted of her explaining her magical subject, carefully detailing the differences between Transfiguration and Charms, and then detailing the rules and procedures of her classroom. She also gave the first paper of the school year, a foot of parchment discussing , in-depth and with examples, the intricacies of Transfiguration and how to determine if a spell was classified as a charm or a transfiguration spell.

The class after Transfiguration was not any better in James' opinion. He already wasn't looking forward to it, based solely on the title. History of Magic had very little appeal. It would not, James accurately surmised, involve practical magic. There would be no spells to cast during the class; it was just lecture after lecture about the past. And, while some found the past endlessly fascinating, James was not one of those people. His least favourite part of family get-togethers was when his older relatives and his parents' friends began reminiscing about the past. It always put James right to sleep.

When he and Sirius walked into the class, his mood went up a little. Standing at the front of the room, behind a decaying lectern was a ghost. A class taught by a ghost could be mildly interesting. Then the ghost, Professor Binns, began to talk and James' mood soured. The ghost spoke with a monotone, meaning that even the interesting parts of the past, where there were wars and bloodshed, would be drained of their excitement level. Nothing was exciting when relayed by a person with an emotionless voice.

The one upside of the class was that, once the professor began lecturing, he didn't notice a lot of what went on in the classroom. There was definite goofing off potential and would make the prospect of listening to hours of droning lecturing a little more bearable.

Finally, James found himself sitting in his final class of the day. Of all the classes offered besides maybe flying lessons, Defense Against the Dark Arts definitely had the most potential. It offered the opportunity to actually perform magic, to discuss potentially dangerous objects, animals, and curses, and to come face to face with the darkest magic imaginable and learn how to defeat it. All of it sounded amazing to James. He couldn't wait for the class to begin. Even if it was with the hated Slytherin house.

The professor arrived only seconds after the last students had settled in, almost as if he'd been watching them. He strode into the room, his head held high; James sensed a high level of arrogance in the man. He wore dark, almost black, midnight blue robes. They looked expensive, like something his father wore when entertaining friends on special occasions. This man had money, a lot of it, and wanted them all to know. Most professors did not make enough to afford one of those expensive sets of robes and, if they did happen to own one, they wouldn't wear it day-to-day. Yet, this professor was.

Sirius lightly elbowed him in the ribs and gave James a look that said he couldn't believe the guy. James returned the look in kind.

"Hello, first year," the professor spoke once he'd reached the front of the classroom. His tone was haughty and condescending. Out of the corner of his eye, James noticed Sirius clench his fists so tightly his knuckles turned white.

"My name is Albert Strinkley. You will refer to me as Professor Strinkley. I have taught the subject of Defense Against the Dark Arts for ten years. I can assure you that I am the most qualified person for this job as I have extensive experience with all of the Dark Arts."

A shiver ran up James' spine. Professor Strinkley spoke of himself with such arrogance that James instantly disliked him. But what really put James on edge was the way Strinkley had spoken of the Dark Arts. Alone, his words could be interpreted as someone who had experienced them and fought against them or researched them in order to better combat them. However, when combined with the reverence and adoration that had filled Professor Strinkley's voice, James was left with a very different impression. It seemed that the professor might have practiced the Dark Arts and not found them as distasteful as they truly were.

"This class will not be simple. Defending against the power of dark magic is not easy. Not to mention that the Dark Arts are many and varied. They are quite the complicated subject. Some of you," Professor Strinkley paused and looked meaningfully at the Gryffindor half of the class, "will not be able to cut it, I'm afraid. I will try to instruct you as best I can, but a … natural talent is often required to be truly successful. Only the right kind of wizard can truly match the Dark Arts." With each statement, James felt his dislike form into hatred for the man. He turned to look at Sirius and saw that the boy's fists were clenched so tight that his fingernails were digging into his fleshy palm and his teeth and jaw were so rigid that the longhaired boy looked like a statue. Whatever James felt about the slimy Professor Strinkley, Sirius experienced it tenfold.

"Are you okay, mate?" James whispered to the longhaired boy, concern filling his face. Sirius was quite for several seconds, clenching even tighter. James was worried he might explode, but then he spoke.

"He's an arrogant, egomaniacal, pureblood fanatic and I can't believe he has a teaching post here. I mean his talk about 'the right kinds of wizard'? It's absolutely terrible!"

"I agree, mate," James spoke, placing a comforting hand on Sirius' arm. The other boy remained tense throughout the whole lesson, a long lecture on the dark arts that seemed more like praise than condemnation.

* * *

James was flying through his classes for the first few days. What was being taught, except for maybe History of Magic, was at the minimum mildly interesting. He could get away with goofing off in class. He could easily master the magic and put in enough effort in homework that he achieved decent grades on it.

All of his professors liked him, with the exception of Strinkley. Despite his pureblood status, Strinkley's distaste of Gryffindor counted very strongly against him. Nothing James could do would make up for the house he was sorted into.

On the opposite side of spectrum of Professor Strinkley was the Deputy Headmaster and Herbology professor. Professor Greensleigh adored James. He sang his praises loudly and near-constantly. James could get away with almost anything in Herbology. It was quickly becoming his favourite subject.

Another of his favourites was Transfiguration. It was, by far, the subject he excelled at the most. Both the theory and the practice came almost naturally to him. It all made sense and he could perform most of the spells with only minimal practice. Even Professor McGonagall was growing on James. He wasn't able to goof off in her class as obviously. Instead of talking, James and Sirius were forced to pass notes. They actually practiced the skills and couldn't get away with jinxing each other, like they did elsewhere. But instead of resenting the forced rule following, James found he could deal with it. And, though he wouldn't admit it, he excelled even more when forced to actually focus on the magic.

By Wednesday of the first week, the Gryffindors had experienced all their subjects and met all their professors. James' confidence had grown with each subject and he was feeling pretty good about how his first year would unfold. The last subject for the Gryffindors was during the last period on Wednesday. Potions with Professor Slughorn.

James had been looking forward to Potions. Much of his family's wealth had been based on potions, so he was fairly confident that he would continue his streak and excel at this class as well. Plus, he'd heard that Professor Slughorn could recognize talent and boisterously acknowledged it. Rumour had it that he liked to 'collect' extraordinary people and James desperately wanted to be collected.

"Oh great," Sirius muttered under his breath as they entered the potions classroom, "Slytherins." James looked up and took in the sight of the Slytherin first years. The Gryffindors had been lucky in James' estimation, and only had one other class with the Slytherins, Defense Against the Dark Arts. He hoped that wasn't a sign.

The quartet found an unoccupied table near the middle left side of the classroom. They then began unpacking and preparing for the class. James decided that, in order to get on Professor Slughorn's good side, for at least the first few classes he would put in the effort. He would put his best student self on display, truly show what he could accomplish.

"Good afternoon!" a voice bellowed, grasping the attention of the students in the class. He stood behind a long table at the front of the class. Sitting on the table were three large cauldrons. From the smells and different coloured smoke that emanated from them, James deduced that each held a different potion.

"I am Professor Slughorn, potions master. I like to start my first classes off with a little challenge. So, gather round the table and take a good look at each of the three cauldrons. Each contains a different potion. Two are simple and will be ones you will learn this year. The third is much more complicated; it will not be something you learn until fifth year and is your prize for the competition."

Professor Slughorn tapped the board next to him and three names appeared on the board. James assumed they were connected to the cauldrons.

_Forgetfulness Potion_

_Pepper Up Potion_

_Invisibility Draught_

"The first part of the challenge is to correctly identify each of the three potions before you. Take a moment, study each potion, and be prepared with your answer." Professor Slughorn then opened his arms and invited the students forward.

A smile crossed James' face. His ancestor had invented the Pepper Up Potion. It was such a point of pride for the Potter family that every member was taught what it looked like, what it did, and how to brew it from a young age. James was positive he could identify that potion. He'd either have to go with instinct or guess on the other two.

The students quickly got to work. James examined the three potions and easily determined that the center cauldron contained the Pepper Up Potion. Unfortunately, the other two potions were a complete mystery. He had no idea what the characteristics of Forgetfulness Potion or Invisibility Draught were. Any identification he was to make would be a guess at best.

Instead of giving up right then, James chose to continue to examine the potions and hope for some sign to provide him with the answer.

"Professor," a soft voice spoke. All the heads of the students sprung up at the word and searched for the person who had spoken. It was none other than Severus Snape. James quickly began glaring daggers at the boy, angry that he may have identified the potions before him.

"Go on, Mr. –" Professor Slughorn paused.

"Snape, sir. The Forgetfulness potion is on the right. The Pepper Up Potion is in the middle. The Invisibility Draught is on the left." Snape spoke quietly; James found it hard to hear him at points. Professor Slughorn broke into a wide smile.

"Excellent! Absolutely correct! Well done my boy!" He patted Snape on the back a few times. He then pulled out his wand and made the cauldrons vanish, except for a small vial of the Invisibility Draught, the reward for the challenge. On the blackboard, taking the place of the three potions was a set of instructions.

"These are the steps for brewing the Forgetfulness Potion. This is your task for the rest of the class. The student who brews the best potion will be awarded with this vial of Invisibility Draught. You have the rest of class; all the ingredients you need can be found in the storeroom. Good luck!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the students scrambled to get ready and begin brewing. They had about an hour left and, according to the instructions, it would take 45 minutes. That was if they were absolutely perfect and, seeing as they were first years brewing their first potion, they would most likely be nowhere near perfect. They would need all the time they could get.

About halfway through, James quickly assessed his potion in relation to the instructions and descriptions on the board. He was sorely disappointed. According to the description, at this point his potion should be changing from white to clear with each stir. James' potion was definitely not becoming clear. It was, in fact, slightly off white, almost grey really.

Definitely not good.

James was busy studying the board, trying to figure out where he'd gone wrong when Slughorn's voice boomed out over the crowd.

"Well, well, well! What have we here?" He was standing over Snape's shoulder, peering into his cauldron, a look of pride on his face. He stuck his wand in the cauldron, obviously testing it. When he pulled his wand out, a wide smile crossed his face.

"Absolutely perfect, Mr. Snape! I dare say one of the best I've seen in years! Congratulations! We have a winner for our little competition."

James watched as Slughorn produced the vial of Invisibility Draught and handed it over to Snape. A knot formed in the pit of his stomach. Not only had he been bested by the slimy, greasy boy who'd chosen Slytherin, but he hadn't even come close with his potion. He'd messed up several steps and even missed one entirely.

As James left the class, stunned and dejected, he focused on the two lessons he'd learned within it. Firstly, potions was not his class, not his class at all. Secondly, and more importantly, Severus Snape could beat him. That second fact, James vowed would never be allowed to occur again. Not if James had anything to say about it.


	11. Chapter 10: It Started Small

**Chapter Ten**

**It Started Small**

* * *

_Now, now my good man, this is no time for making enemies_

_~Voltaire _

_(On his deathbed when asked by a priest to renounce Satan)_

* * *

As the weeks passed, James quickly discovered something. For him, magic was fairly easy. He wasn't perfect; he never got a spell on the first try. But it did take him significantly fewer tries than the rest of his classmates. He nearly froze his entire glass after only one day of practice in Charms. He transfigured his circular button into a square button after only two classes. Magic took effort, but for James, that effort was significantly less.

Luckily for James, Sirius seemed as naturally talented and provided James with a partner to goof off with. They would sit at the back of a class, or in a secluded corner, and talk about Quidditch, or cool jinxes they'd heard about. When it came time to practice, they would get up and try a few times, then maybe, if they were making good progress, try one of the jinxes out on each other.

They had yet to become disruptive, so, with the exception of Professor McGonagall who was a stickler for rules, and Professor Strinkley who hated them, the professors let them get away with a lot. Remus, on the other hand, often gave them disapproving looks.

Ever since the first day, when James forced his friendship upon Remus, the sandy haired boy had been sitting with James, Sirius, and Peter for meals and classes. He still didn't say much and would head off on his own to the library quite often, but James would take what he could get.

Remus, James decided, was good at magic, but he required more bookwork and effort to achieve comparable results to the messy haired boy. During classes the thin boy would take copious notes as the professors lectured. He would go about the practical magic with focus and determination. In the evenings, he always had a book open, taking more notes.

Unlike Remus, who was still keeping his distance, Peter never seemed to leave James' and Sirius' side. He spent nearly every waking minute with the pair and had begun to partake in Sirius' and James' goofing off. He too wouldn't listen in class and, when practicing magic, would give up quickly and watch James and Sirius jinx each other. James was happy for the audience; he liked impressing Peter with his magical skill. It was like having a younger brother.

It was obvious to James that Peter's lack of scholarly focus was not a result of the ease with which he grasped the work. Peter was avoiding work not because he found it boring, but because he found it hard. James sometimes felt like he should help Peter, encourage him to continue his practice and give him pointers but James didn't want to lose his audience, and so he let Peter continue to give up.

He figured that if worse came to worse, he could always try and tutor Peter to ensure he passed his exams.

* * *

"I performed that simple shield charm much better than Price did! His was half the size of mine! I should have received those five house points, not Slytherin!" James complained loudly as the first year Gryffindors made their way to Transfiguration. In the nearly one month since the beginning of classes, James' opinion of Defense Against the Dark Arts and Professor Strinkley had only soured more and more. Now, after every class, James found at least one thing, though usually more, to complain about. Lately, the trend had focused on Strinkley's bias.

The Defense Against the Dark Arts professor had been a Slytherin at school; he'd as much as bragged about it in several classes. He obviously favoured Slytherin, praising and rewarding them significantly more than the Gryffindors. He was also much harsher to the Gryffindors, yelling or punishing them for minor errors that the Slytherins got away with.

That day had been Shield Charms, and Professor Strinkley had promised five house points to the individual who could perform the best one. He'd given them twenty minutes of practice time, during which he'd given pointers only to the Slytherins and completely ignored the Gryffindors. Then, when time had come to perform the spell, Professor Strinkley had rewarded Slytherin Matthias Price. In James' estimation, Price's spell was cut rate and faulty, especially when compared to James' own.

"I agree," Sirius added, "Strinkley definitely had it out for anyone not in Slytherin. I mean, my spell was definitely better than Price's and yet Strinkley told me mine was not effective and would allow even the simplest jinx through. And then he didn't help me improve it! He turned quickly to Moira Scott who I thought was doing just fine and didn't really need any pointers."

"He didn't help me either," Peter spoke hesitantly. He had obviously been struggling with his Shield Charm, only producing wisps of smoke from his wand. Strinkley had berated Peter for his lack of skill but offered no advice or aid.

"Just not fair! Not fair at all! We should bring it up to Professor McGonagall and see if we can't get something done, have some punishment enacted, and either ensure Professor Strinkley treats us fairly or else is dismissed." James' eyes sparkled with mischievous glee as the plan formed in his mind. Sirius met James' eye and understanding crossed the longer haired boy's face. They had only known each other a month, but in that time, they'd become thick as thieves; they always could guess what the other was thinking.

The boys, along with the other Gryffindors and the Ravenclaws, filed into Transfiguration. The buttons that they had been practicing with for the past month were no longer on their desks, replaced instead by small wooden cups. For a minute, presented with the prospect of learning something new, James forgot all about his complaints regarding Strinkley. He quickly took his seat and focused on Professor McGonagall.

"Good afternoon," Professor McGonagall spoke, instantly quieting down any remaining conversations. "Your button transfiguration has been progressing along quite nicely. I think most of you have grasped the skill well enough that we can now move on. Next, I would like you to change your wooden cups into glass goblets. Now, this is a more difficult skill requiring more focus and a greater understanding of theory." Professor McGonagall then began an explanation of what was involved in the spell and James began to tune her out.

"Hey," Sirius whispered from James' right. James quickly shot Sirius a look, showing that he'd heard. The pair had quickly discovered that, if they were going to talk during McGonagall's class, they had to be as discreet as possible. Sirius then knocked his arm against James' and slid a scrap of parchment towards the other boy.

_We still going through with it? –S_

It took James a moment to remember what 'it' Sirius was referring to. Then it clicked and he quickly scribbled a response.

_Of course. Bring him down! Hang back after class? –J_

_Excellent! Hey, wanna see who can change their cup first? I bet I can get it in ten tries –S_

_You're on! –J_

"James," Remus suddenly hissed from James' left, "McGonagall." He looked up from the note he'd been passing with Sirius. Professor McGonagall was staring at him with an expectant look.

"Would you like me to repeat the question, Mr. Potter? Are your notes that distracting?" Her expression made it clear that she knew he hadn't been writing about her lecture. James had two options, figure out what question had been asked and somehow answer it, or come clean and face Professor McGonagall reading his note aloud.

_What's the most important step to a successful transfiguration?_

The words suddenly appeared on the note. James breathed a sigh of relief, then spoke. His tone was calm and cool, creating the appearance that he hadn't been almost caught.

"Sorry, Professor. I was just trying to get everything down. It is so important, after all. To answer your question, visualizing the object in its transfigured state is important to a successful transfiguration."

Professor McGonagall looked at him, making it clear that she didn't believe his excuse but letting him get away with it because he had provided her with an answer. James turned to Remus and mouthed 'I owe you' before focusing on McGonagall, determined to not have to face the same situation again.

To James, Remus was still a bit of a mystery. He often kept himself apart from the other first year Gryffindors, choosing to spend his free time on his own. James was also positive that Remus was hiding something from the rest of them. There was that strange second sheet of paper that the sandy haired boy had received with his schedule on the first day of class. Then a few days later, Remus had gotten really sickly looking, more so than usual, and said he was going to the infirmary to see if the matron had something for an upset stomach. However, when James had gone up later to check on his friend, Madame Pomfrey, the matron, had insisted that no one had been up to see her all day. The next day though, Remus looked much better and seemed to have returned to his normal self, so James didn't question it in the moment. Maybe Remus had chosen to just sleep it off in the dormitory instead of seeking a healer.

Yet, despite all this seclusion and secrecy, Remus was always willing to help his friends study and complete homework, once spending an entire evening trying to explain to Peter the proper way to transform his button to no avail. Whenever a professor was coming by their table while James and Sirius were goofing off, Remus would let the pair know so they could look like they were being productive. And, Remus had provided James with Professor McGonagall's question to get him out of a potentially sticky situation. The dichotomy of Remus' behaviour made it hard for James to pinpoint if the skinny boy wanted to be friends with the other Gryffindors, but James' constant craving for people to surround himself with lead him to not question the other boy too much. For the time being, Remus was sticking around most of the time and that was good enough for James. He could overlook the other things.

* * *

After class, the four Gryffindor first years stayed seated as the others filed out. Professor McGonagall was sitting behind a large mahogany desk at the front of the room, writing in a fairly battered book. Once the entire class had exited the classroom, the four boys led by James and Sirius walked up to the desk. McGonagall didn't look up.

"If you are here to apologize for goofing off in class today, Mr. Potter, I will gladly hear what you have to say. Otherwise, I have a lot of work I'd like to complete before dinner tonight and would prefer not to be interrupted." She momentarily paused her writing, lifting her quill and waited for James' response. Sirius and Peter both turned to look at James, expecting him to take the lead with this new unexpected hitch.

"Of course, Professor. I am terribly sorry about what happened. Your lectures are extremely important and not paying attention to them could have grave implications for my magical education and may even harm others if I miss-perform a spell," James apologized, his tone truly conciliatory. Sirius shot him a look having not expected the other boy to apologize and forego lodging a complaint like they'd planned. James, in turn, shot Sirius a look telling him to be patient.

"I should have been listening to your lecture," James continued, "however I was distracted by a … personal problem. " James paused, searching for the correct word to describe his situation with Professor Strinkley.

McGonagall, who had been looking at her notes in the aged book, finally looked up at the quartet in front of her. She lowered her quill and levelled them with a look encouraging James to continue. He took a shaky breath, falsely indicating his reticence to talk about the matter.

"Well, you see Professor, it's about our Defense Against the Dark Arts teacher, Professor Strinkley."

"Yes, Mr. Potter, what about him?"

James had to suppress a smile. He'd decided to appear reluctant to talk about it because he felt it would be more beneficial. If he was too eager, Professor McGonagall may not take his complaint seriously. However, reluctance showed that he didn't want to share it, didn't want to get Strinkley in trouble, but was compelled to talk about it because it was so important. And it seemed that his faux-reluctance was working. Professor McGonagall truly looked concerned, ready to help students in her house with whatever problem they were having.

"Well, occasionally in class, he appears to favour the Slytherin students over the Gryffindors. Today alone he failed to help Peter, who was seriously struggling with his Shield Charm, in favour of praising Slytherins who could perform the spell exceptionally already." James then turned to Peter who nodded in confirmation.

Professor McGonagall was quiet for several seconds. She looked at each boy and then sighed. Her concerned expression had disappeared.

"Professor Strinkley is a respected professor at this school. He has been interviewed and vetted through an extremely rigorous process. He has also been teaching at this school for five years without issue. If you have a problem with Professor Strinkley, you need to speak with him about it. Otherwise you need to respect Professor Strinkley and treat him with the deference he deserves.

"Now hurry along or you'll be late for your next class." She then levelled them with a look that made it clear that the conversation had ended. The boys bowed their heads and then shuffled off to their next class, Potions. James, though momentarily deterred, would not give up until Professor Strinkley was replaced. He'd just have to find another way of doing so.

* * *

On Fridays, the first year Gryffindors last class was Potions. Next to Defense Against the Dark Arts, Potions was James' least favourite class. It was his worst class, though he wasn't complete rubbish. He could, if he took his time, follow the instructions and produce an acceptable potion. However, he could not do it quickly like other magical disciplines and his results were never at the same level in potions.

Also, Potions meant Slytherins and having to watch Snivellus one-up everyone with his unnatural ability to quickly produce absolutely perfect potions. Every time it happened anger bubbled up in James' chest. He wanted to snap the other boy's wand in half or hex him into oblivion. He couldn't stand to be bested by the lowly, slimy Slytherin.

"My, my, Mr. Snape," Professor Slughorn spoke as he circled throughout the classroom observing each student's attempt at the Forgetfulness Potion antidote. James had been carefully, meticulously following each step laid out in his textbook. He would not miss one or make a mistake. He had felt he'd been doing a pretty stellar job, even earning an approving smile from Slughorn.

Then the potions professor arrived at Severus' table, and any sense of accomplishment that James had been feeling came crashing down.

"Absolutely perfect! You even got it to the exact right shade of grey. Ten points to Slytherin!" Snivellus was finished his potion, an excellent one at that, and James was only on step ten of eighteen. In anger, he turned to Sirius beside him.

"Snivellus' head is getting too large for his own good. We need to do something about it," James whispered. Sirius looked up from his potion and smiled at James.

"I've got just the thing."

* * *

On that particular Friday, the first years finally got their first flying lesson. This, of all the subjects and events, had been what had kept James going through terrible DADA classes and miserable Potions lessons. As the first years made their way down to the Quidditch field, James had a pronounced skip in his step.

It also didn't hurt that Sirius had developed the most ingenious way to get back at Snivellus for upstaging both James and Sirius in Potions. This afternoon would be, in James' estimation, the best since he'd gotten to Hogwarts and been sorted into Gryffindor.

James shot an eye in Severus' direction as the group picked their way across the grounds. The Slytherin stood apart from his housemates; the gap wasn't large, but still noticeable, and James made a note of it. Even amongst his peers he was an outcast. That was definitely an exploitable fact.

Walking a few steps behind Snivellus and the Slytherins was Sirius. He had broken apart from the Gryffindors by honing in on a particular Slytherin girl, Moira Scott, who Sirius had met at Diagon Alley that summer. Sirius had explained that they had talked about Quidditch at their meeting, so talking to her at that moment, when they were about to partake in their first flying lesson would make sense. And it would provide him with the perfect cover to get close to Snape without raising suspicions. Sirius was, as discretely as possible setting up their revenge. James smiled at his friends and nodded slightly, encouraging Sirius along in his work.

Finally, the first years arrived at the Quidditch stadium. Rows of brooms met them, set out ready for their first lessons. The brooms were all in different states, some pristine and brand new, others well-worn and poorly maintained. First years brought their own brooms, but if they were unable, a school broom was provided for them. The school brooms were of the poorest quality and clearly denoted whose parents could not afford brooms.

James' broom was sleek and brand new, the fastest one on the market. He proudly walked up to the elegant broom as other students stared jealously. Both Remus and Peter had school-provided brooms, though by James' estimation they were two of the higher quality. Lily, with her muggle background, had a very basic broom; James made a mental note to educate the redhead about the different makes, models, and types of brooms.

Sirius, James noticed, was carefully picking his way towards a splintering, dirty, ragged school broom. He had his wand in his hands and kept his head on a swivel, watching the other first years mill about in search of their brooms.

"Mr. Black," a voice echoed through the crowd, "that is not your broom! Please pay attention!" Standing off to the side of the Quidditch field, looking quite full of himself was Karl Broadmoor, a retired professional Quidditch player recently hired to teach, coach, and referee at the school.

Sirius gave Broadmoor a sheepish look of apology and slunk back towards his expensive looking broom. Once he was standing over his own broom, he shot James a smug look. 'Success!'

"Good afternoon, first years. Welcome to your first flying lesson. Now, I'm sure many of you have been on a broom before, but many of you haven't. So, like many of your classes thus far, I will begin today by evaluating where you are. So, to begin, simply step up to your broom, place your hand above it, and clearly say the command 'Up!'" Broadmoor spoke to the class once they'd settled down a little. Everyone followed his instructions, some like James with more confidence than others.

"Up!" James commanded and his broom readily arrived in his hand. Sirius' broom acted in kind. The pair then quickly turned to look at Severus. He was repeating the word 'up' over and over again, yet his broom refused to budge. Other students could get their brooms to at least twitch or hop up off the ground, but Snape's didn't move at all. James and Sirius began snickering.

After twenty minutes, all the first years managed to get their brooms off the ground. Snivellus was the last one to accomplish it and it took a fair amount of coaching from Broadmoor. Next, the students were instructed to mount their brooms and gently push off from the ground to hover only a few inches. It was the same way James' father had first taught him to fly.

Most of the students once again readily followed the instructions and quickly mounted their brooms. James and Sirius moved much slower than the rest of the students; their focus was much more squarely on Snape and his actions. He timidly mounted his broom, obviously not comfortable or competent on it. As soon as his foot hit the ground and he closed his legs around the broom, it took off across the stadium.

The broom was not high off the ground; in fact, Snape was dragging his feet along the grass, trying to stop himself. When the broom reached the end of the playing field. It took off over the seats and up into the open air. The entire time, Severus was screaming at the top of his lungs. Broadmoor quickly mounted his own broom and took off after the slimy, screaming Slytherin.

"Everyone stay put or it'll be detention for a month!" Broadmoor called from the air. As soon as their instructor was out of earshot, Sirius and James fell upon each other in peals of laughter.

"Did you see his face?" James managed to get out.

"Probably wet himself!" Sirius responded before the mirth overcame him. Peter quickly joined in with the laughter, though his wasn't as all-consuming as the other two.

"Really can't trust those school-provided brooms. They're a bit touchy! Best to get your own, though his parents would have to sell the tiny shack they probably call home to even afford the most basic of brooms!" James ribbed.

"What did you do?!" a loud, obviously concerned voice yelled. James, bent over as a result of his laughing fit, looked up to see an irate Lily. For a split second he felt bad for what he'd done. Not because he regretted humiliating and scaring Snape, but because of the look Lily was currently giving him. Her green eyes seemed to fill with flames and her brow furrowed so much that the space between them disappeared. Her hands were clenched at her side and James was momentarily worried that she'd hit him with them.

"We were only enacting karma, Lily," Sirius responded, clutching his sides and smiling widely.

"Well, it was cruel and unnecessary, and I will be informing Professor Broadmoor about it! You can't treat people like that!" Lily then turned on her heel and stormed off. James wanted to go after her but stopped himself. Snivellus had just gone shooting passed James' sightline and the messy haired boy was reminded of the hilarity of the situation and dissolved back into immense, side-splitting laughter.

Served Snivellus right!


	12. Chapter 11: Snakes

**Chapter Eleven**

**Snakes**

* * *

_I'm like a snake sleeping on a rock. I won't bother you unless you poke a stick at me_

_~Harlan Ellison_

* * *

James was on a high. He had never felt so alive. Watching Snape careen around the Quidditch pitch with Karl Broadmoor chasing after him had been by far the most exhilarating thing James had ever taken part in. He was so keyed up that he hadn't even been able to sit still and eat dinner that evening. Instead, he had told his friends that he would meet them back in the common room in an hour and had gone off to explore the castle. He figured if he wandered around for long enough, he could wear off some of the excess energy that was coursing through his veins.

He had been wandering around for about twenty minutes, but all he had managed to do was find a hidden passageway and make himself more excited, if that was even possible. With each step he took, he had replayed the events of that afternoon over and over again. If he was going to calm down, he would need to distract his thoughts as well as moving his body.

'I wonder when Quidditch try outs will be. Is there even an open position? I haven't heard anything about Gryffindor being short a man, so there probably won't be any try outs this year. I'll just have to kick butt at flying lessons and hope that someone graduates next year.' James thought as he paced through the hallway with the charms classroom.

'Sirius and I should definitely make this havoc wreaking a regular habit. It is great fun and a pretty decent way to practice the magic we are being taught. I know Dumbledore said that we weren't allowed to practice magic in the hallways, but if we're careful and people don't know that it is us that is doing it, we shouldn't get too many detentions. Though detention would be worth it if I could feel this exhilarated again,' James mused as he wandered past Transfiguration. As he walked passed the door to McGonagall's office, even though he wasn't breaking any rules, he tiptoed extra carefully in case McGonagall was alerted to his presence.

'Hopefully Lily won't stay mad at me for too long. I don't know why she's even friends with Snivellus. She can obviously do so much better. She'll eventually see just how slimy he is and then, I'm sure, she'll thank me for putting Snape in his place,' James imagined as he strolled along the Defense Against the Dark Arts corridor. He was starting to feel calmer and was considering returning to the Gryffindor common room and discussing making pranking regular with Sirius when the sound of whispered voices reached his ears.

James quickly and quietly crept up the hallway to the corner. As inconspicuously as possible, he peaked around the wall. He saw Professor Strinkley, his expensive robes billowing around him as he animatedly discussed something with an older looking Slytherin student. James couldn't hear what the pair was saying because he was too far away, and he didn't want to risk moving any closer. There wasn't any coverage between where James was standing and the pair. However, the way that both Strinkley and the other student kept surveying the hallway made James suspect that they didn't want anyone coming upon them. It was all highly suspicious behaviour.

The young Gryffindor would have loved to listen in for longer, but something seemed to spook Strinkley and he quickly grabbed the student's arm and pulled him through a door into what James assumed was either Strinkley's private quarters or an empty classroom that would provide them more secrecy. As soon as the door shut on the pair, James turned on his heel and ran towards the Gryffindor common room.

He burst through the portrait hole and into the common room. His less than graceful entrance caused quite a few heads to snap in his direction. James ignored all the others and went straight to his friends collected in a corner.

"You guys are not going to believe what I just saw!" he exclaimed as he plopped down next to Sirius. Sirius and Peter had been flipping through a Quidditch magazine, Sirius enthusiastically instructing Peter on the different aspects of each broom and what made one better than another. Remus had his nose buried in a textbook, reading up on what they would be learning in their next charms class. However, at James' exclamation, all three looked up from what they were doing and turned to their friend.

"I was wandering the hallways, you know, trying to blow off some steam. I was walking through the Defence Against the Dark Arts hallways when I saw Strinkley talking to some upper-class Slytherin. It was a little strange because they were being super secretive, though there wasn't any need really. And then, when I came up, I hid but it was like they could still sense me or something and Strinkley quickly pulled the Slytherin into his office."

Sirius and Remus were looking a little less than convinced. A professor talking to a student, even late in the evening and in a hallway, was not a strange occurrence in and of itself. However, the whole thing, with how they were acting, the general atmosphere, and the quiet, barely about a whisper, volume they were talking at, combined to create a sense that they were trying to hide it all.

"Look. You had to be there, but it was totally suspicious. I think if we can figure out what is going on, then maybe Professor McGonagall will take our complaints about Strinkley seriously. He's a bad teacher and now he's doing something really shady," James continued, trying to convince his friend.

"So, you want us to keep an eye on Strinkley?" Sirius asked. He still didn't sound convinced, but James was sensing that he might be willing to go along with it. There was a slight air of adventure and mystery surrounding it and that might be enough to persuade his friends to help him.

"Yeah. We can pretend we're wandering the hallways like I was today and see if we can't catch Strinkley doing something again. If we get confronted by a prefect, we can just say we're going for a walk. They can't say we're breaking in rules, as long as we aren't spotted after curfew."

"And maybe," Sirius spoke, his tone suddenly sounding more animated. "Instead of just wandering the hallways, we can practice some jinxes and hexes. The hallways are usually empty, but we might also be able to find someone to practice on, besides each other. It would be like getting two snidgets with one seeker." James liked his friends train of thought and agreed that they would do both things, spy on Strinkley and illicitly practice magic while they did it.

"Maybe we'll even catch Snivellus while we're watching Strinkley as well. It wouldn't surprise me if those two slimy snakes are working together, even though I didn't see Snape tonight. Both of them are no good," James added, imaging the revenge he could continue to inflict on Snape.

* * *

"Did you see the look on his face? Almost looked like he was going to start crying or something!" James exclaimed; his voice filled with mirth. Peter eagerly nodded, looking up at James with pure admiration. James was standing on his chair, his chest puffed out with his hands on his hips. Sirius stood next to him in a similar pose.

"I'd say this was the best one yet. Definitely got the best results!" Sirius chimed in. The four Gryffindor first years were gathered around a table in the library. They were supposed to be working on a paper for Charms, but James and Sirius had quickly gotten distracted.

"Awesome!" Peter squeaked out. He shot a look across the library towards an empty table. Only moments before, Snape had been seated at that table. His presence had distracted James and Sirius, and they quickly decided to play a prank on the solitary Slytherin.

They'd first discussed amongst themselves the focus that Snape had towards his work, mostly said he might set his work on fire because of it. That had acted as their spark of inspiration and a plan quickly followed. As inconspicuously as possible, James pulled out his wand and aimed it at Snape and his table. He then cast a spell that set his work on fire.

Immediately, it brought the librarian upon the boy who had been startled by the sudden appearance of flames at his table. The librarian put out the flames, then yelled at Snape for practicing such dangerous magic in the library. Snape was kicked out and left with his head hung low, his lip quivering.

James and Sirius dissolved into uncontrollable laughter at the plight of Snivellus. It had been two weeks since their first prank against Snape and, in that time, James and Sirius had continued to antagonize him. They'd sent his books flying through the halls. They'd jinxed his hair to drip grease. In Potions, James had switched Snape's crushed leeches for lacewing causing his potion to emit a dark, pungent smoke.

"Maybe next time you'd like to try something, Peter. Or maybe even you, Remus?" James spoke, trying to goad his friends into playing a larger role in their pranks. Peter paled. James knew that his friend wasn't as naturally talented at magic as Sirius and he were, but he still believed that Peter could prank just as well. All he needed was a confidence boost and an opportunity to show his skill.

"I think I'll pass. It all seems a little – cruel. What did he ever do to you?" Remus responded. A few minutes passed in which James noticed Peter staring down Remus. Then, the quiet, mousy boy spoke.

"What did you have in mind for our next prank?" Peter asked, trying to quash his trepidation.

* * *

A few mornings later, the four Gryffindor first years sat at the table. It was early morning and the rest of the Great Hall was eagerly consuming breakfast. Peter appeared too be far too nervous about what was about to happen, and could only stare at the warm, good smelling food. James felt dismayed for the boy and tried to make him feel better, tried to help him settle his nerves.

"Relax, Pete," James whispered in his ear. "It's a simple tripping jinx. Not difficult magic at all. And you've already nailed it in practice." James nodded in the direction of Sirius. They boy was sitting across from them, shovelling food eagerly into his mouth. His right eye was a dark shade of purple, a result of tripping into the corner of his bed during a practice session.

"Ready, Pete?" James asked, removing his hand from Peter's leg and turning to the entrance of the Great Hall. Snape had just entered. It was now Peter's time to shine.

He pulled out his wand and pointed it in Snape's directions. Peter then waited for his target to draw closer. He tried to conceal his wand, to not draw suspicion to himself. James and Sirius were experts at it, but Peter was nowhere near their skill level in concealing their wands and their illicit spell work.

Finally, when Snape was close enough, Peter cast his jinx. Snape's legs became jelly, causing him to topple forwards. His face landed in a large vat of scrambled eggs. When he righted himself, he had eggs sticking to his face and in his hair. The students around him began to chuckle and laugh at the Slytherin's predicament.

Peter, Sirius, and James quickly joined in, knowing that it wouldn't draw any unwanted attention to them after others had laughed first.

"Ehhem, Mr. Pettigrew," a stern voice spoke over his left shoulder. Peter turned; his wand still clutched in his hand. Standing behind him, looking at him in such a way that let him know he was caught, was Professor McGonagall. "A word, if you would."

* * *

Peter had his detention after classes that day. He had been called to Professor McGonagall's office. James, who had already experienced two detentions with the Transfiguration professor, was pretty sure that Peter's detention would consist of writing lines about the importance of rules and not practicing magic outside of the classroom.

Finally, after being gone for about an hour, Peter slunk out of Professor McGonagall's office. His head was hung low and he looked dejected. James wasn't sure why he looked so sullen; detention was annoying, but it really wasn't that terrible to write lines. James made a mental note to ask Peter about it later, but for now he was focused on raising Peter's spirits.

"For he's a jolly good felon! For he's a jolly good felon! For he's a jolly good felon, which nobody can deny." As soon as Peter walked into the hallway, James and Sirius belted out the song. Extremely off key. Peter flushed red at the attention.

James and Sirius quickly embraced Peter in a friendly hug and began patting him on the back. They showered Peter with praise and adoration as they dragged him of down the hallway. Peter only continued to flush.

By the time the trio had arrived back at Gryffindor common room, Pete's head was held high. James had succeed in raising the boys spirits and making him feel proud about serving detention. Detentions were the mark of a true prankster and if Peter wanted to be a part of it, he would need to get used to detention. Both James and Sirius had already received detentions for their pranking; it was a rite of passage.

As soon as the trio walked into the common room, they were accosted by an angry, young, red haired girl. Lily Evans. She'd marched over to the foursome (Remus had been sitting at a table in the common room when James, Sirius, and Peter had arrived). Her facial muscles were taut, and her brow was pinched together in a truly terrifying expression.

"Really now Peter!" Lily exclaimed as she drew close enough to be heard. She spoke just above a whisper, a result of her clenched teeth. "I'd come to expect this asinine behaviour from James and Sirius, but I thought you were better than this! Severus has never done anything to you, expect maybe best the 'great' James in Potions. Leave him alone!"

Peter's face flushed. James had been on the receiving end of quite a few angry rants from the fiery Lily, but Peter was not used to such assaults. He slunk back down, negating all of the work James and Sirius had done to build him up only moments before.

"Oh, it's all in good fun. I'm sure Snivellus is busy working up a way to get back at us as we speak, Lily. Trust me, he's not as innocent as you think he is," James responded confidently. "Besides, that was some really stellar magic that Peter conducted, and he should be proud of what he was able to accomplish!" James clapped the other boy on the back.

Lily huffed in annoyance and then turned on her heel and stormed up to the girls' dormitory. Marlene, Lily's friend and another of the first year Gryffindor girls, levelled Peter, and James, Sirius, and Remus as well he suspected, with a withering glance before following as well. Marlene and Lily hadn't known each other outside of Hogwarts but, much like James and the other boys, the two girls, as well as the other girls in Gryffindor, had all bonded. It looked like Marlene would now be backing Lily up on all her fights.

However, the prospect of having multiple girls yelling at him would not be enough to deter James from pranking Snape. That was something that James would not voluntarily remove from his ever growing to do list.


	13. Chapter 12: The Crowning of Kings

**Chapter Twelve**

**The Crowning of Kings**

* * *

_One can survive anything nowadays, except death, and live down anything, except a good reputation_

_~Oscar Wilde_

* * *

"We meet again, Mr. Potter. Mr. Back. This is becoming quite the routine. One we definitely need to stop recreating." Professor McGonagall spoke, disappointment seeping through her every word. It was now late October. James and Sirius had only been at Hogwarts for two months. Yet, in that time, the pair of them had accumulated a combined total of a dozen detentions. Most of them were for pranks on Severus Snape, though the pair had begun to branch out in their malicious spell casting. They'd also been punished for goofing off in class and in the library.

On that particular occasion, James had gotten bored of studying in the library. No matter how much he tried, goblin rebellions were just not interesting enough to captivate him for long enough to compose a foot of parchment on them. So, to help reinvigorate him and keep himself going for the next few hours, he'd decided to make the nearby pile of books begin to fly throughout the library. They'd just begun learning about the levitation charm and James wanted to see how far he could push his skill. Sirius quickly joined in and before long they were having textbook races throughout the stacks in the library. Needless to say, Mister Herbert, the librarian, was none too pleased with them and had instantly contacted Professor McGonagall to come and deal with the pair of them.

"Sorry, Professor McGonagall," James spoke, his tone sorrowful and apologetic. He did feel bad about inconveniencing her. As head of Gryffindor house, she was responsible for their punishment and was forced to enact it every time the pair was in trouble.

"That remains to be seen," she responded, clearly not believing James' apology. "Perhaps tonight's detention will act as a hindrance the next time you two choose to perform unsanctioned magic. Follow me." James hung his head low, ashamed by the admonishment from the professor. He and Sirius slowly followed her out of the Transfiguration office and classroom. The trio wound through hallways before finally coming to stop in front of a small wooden door.

"This, gentlemen, is the storage room for all brooms in the school. It contains all school-owned brooms, as well as several belonging to students. Your task tonight is to clean all of them, as well as mend any school brooms that you find in disrepair. To make this more memorable, you will complete it all by hand. Without magic.

"Your wand, Mr. Potter. And yours, Mr. Black." Professor McGonagall held out her hand, and the boys reluctantly obliged. She then turned and left the broom closet, informing the boys they could retrieve their wands once they'd completed their task.

James turned to look at what exactly they'd need to do. McGonagall had, thankfully, not expected the boys to do the task actually by hand and had provided them with a fairly rudimentary broom repair kit, a bucket with soapy water, and sponges and scrub brushes for them to do their cleaning. That being said, there had to be at least 150 brooms in the closet. It was not going to be an easy task, whether done entirely by hand or not.

"This is going to take all night!" Sirius exclaimed, a look of sorrow crossing his regal features as he looked into the rather large broom cupboard.

"Well, at least we'll get to stay out passed curfew and not get in trouble for it," James responded, trying to sound as cheerful as possible in spite of their situation. He then pushed up the sleeves of his robe and dug into the nearest bucket, ready to start what was most definitely their worst detention yet.

* * *

"Halloween is a week away," Sirius suddenly spoke one day as the foursome lounged in the Gryffindor common room. It was a week since James and Sirius had spent four hours in the school broom closet, and they'd been maintaining a relatively low profile. James had felt bad about what they'd been doing to Professor McGonagall and had turned down a lot of Sirius' propositions. Plus, he was still facing broom-cleaning flashbacks and really didn't want to see what Professor McGonagall would come up with next to top their last detention. James had told Sirius that they should stop for the time being, at least until they could look at a broom and not feel absolute revulsion at it.

"I've heard Hogwarts throws quite the celebration. They decorate the Great Hall and have this amazing feast," Remus spoke, responding to the comment without looking up from the paper he was writing. He was the only one of the four who was engaged in productive schoolwork.

"Yes, that. But also, I've read that on Halloween, muggles will often perform acts of mischief and trickery. I thought, since it's been a while since we did anything, we could graduate to a big event on Halloween. Perpetuate the muggle tradition?" Sirius looked right at James as he spoke, obviously looking for his approval. James and Sirius were a team; they pranked together. If James turned him down, then Sirius' plan would fizzle out.

James was quiet for several seconds, focused on his attempts to transfigure a couch cushion into a teddy bear. It was a spell he'd discovered in the back of his textbook and was difficult because of the size of the object. James was determined to master it before Christmas break.

He was also mulling over Sirius' words. He had seen the muggle children of the nearby village wandering around on the night of Halloween before. They'd all been dressed up. Some as strange beasts like a green figure with bolts in his neck. Some as more recognizable, if slightly distorted beasts, like vampires and werewolves. Some as strange figures with capes and masks. And even some as witches, though James had never seen a green skinned, wart covered witch. Then, as the evening got later, older boys and girls would emerge from their homes and commit acts of vandalism and the like. The old church in town had been covered in toilet paper on more than one occasion after Halloween.

As James reminisced about some of his observations of the mischief that the teenagers of Godric's Hallow got up to a smile crossed his face.

"What did you have in mind?" James finally asked. The itch that compelled him to perform acts of mischief was getting harder and harder to resist. Plus, the possibility of performing something large, of having his name known throughout the school, was extremely enticing.

"Well, first, we need to find out where the kitchens are located."

* * *

In the week leading up to Halloween, James, Sirius, Peter, and even Remus began scouring the castle. In fact, it had been Remus who had divided it into quadrants and assigned each person one to look for anything that could possibly point to the kitchens. Then each night, the boys would meet up and debrief. The skinny boy had insisted it would be more productive for them to search on their own. Plus, it would attract less suspicion than if they went as a group because, on their own, it would be easier to pass of their reconnaissance as simply being lost in the large and unfamiliar castle. James had instantly seen the brilliance in this plan and praised Remus accordingly. The other boy had momentarily flushed red, but then got right back to explain the quadrants to the others.

While James searched for the kitchens, he was also looking to see if he could run into Professor Strinkley acting suspiciously again. He hadn't come across the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor acting strangely since that first day in early October, nearly a month prior. And he was having similar results with his kitchen search

The first two nights of searching for the kitchens all four had nothing to report. They'd searched a significant portion of the castle and came up empty. James was starting to feel a little frustrated and disheartened. Hogwarts castle was expansive. It easily housed the several hundred students that passed through each year, as well as the staff and countless elves that maintained the castle. On top of that, James suspected that there were several hidden passageways and entryways, and that there may even be some magically concealed rooms. It could take a lifetime to search out every inch and nook and cranny.

Then finally, on the third day and with only four to go until the Halloween feast, things seemed to turn around for them. When they met up that night, each of the four of them had large wide smiles on their faces and a sense of triumph emanating from them.

"I think I've been quite productive today," James began the meeting. He was lounging in one of the armchairs of the common room. "I managed to follow a house elf who was carrying some dirty dishes through several hallways. Unfortunately, I lost him when I was stopped by a Ravenclaw prefect asking what I was doing heading up to Ravenclaw tower. What about everyone else?" James just shrugged off his failure and turned to look at his friends expectantly. Surely, their exuberance could only mean good things.

"So, the kitchens may be near Ravenclaw?" Sirius asked from his similar position on an armchair opposite James'.

"They could be, or the elf was just cleaning up Ravenclaw tower. We'll just need to keep looking." Despite the lack of real progress that James had made, he remained optimistic. There had yet to be a problem that he couldn't resolve; he had not thus far in his life come to an insurmountable obstacle. If they just kept up their work, they would eventually find what they were looking for.

Sirius nodded at James words before sharing his piece of news, "I found two secret passageways in the west towers of the castle. One of them leads to the library and the other could easily shave off two minutes between Transfiguration and Charms. This castle has so many secrets! I know it's not helpful on the hunt for the kitchen front, but I still think it's useful information." As Sirius spoke, Remus wrote on a piece of parchment.

"Definitely helpful. Anything that can help us shave off transition time and give us more time for pranking is information we can use!" James returned.

"I found something like that," Peter piped in. Before Sirius had spoken, Peter had looked anxious, excited but also concerned. After Sirius had spoken, Peter lost all traces of concern. Now, he just looked excited. "On the third floor, behind one of the statues, is a passageway that leads outside the castle. I still don't have anything on the kitchen-"

"I do!" Remus suddenly exclaimed, cutting Peter off. It was the most animated James had seen him. He was nearly jumping out of his skin waiting for his change to speak.

"Go on," James prodded after Remus was quiet for several seconds. After his outburst, Remus had returned to the piece of parchment and jotted down a few notes. When James spoke, Remus sheepishly looked back up.

"Sorry. Right. Well, I started by coming up with a list of possible locations that the kitchen could be. It, logically, should be near the Great Hall, and most likely under it since that is where the food appears from. So, that house elf you saw was probably just cleaning up Ravenclaw tower." Remus looked at James self-consciously, obviously not completely comfortable with having to let the messy haired boy down. James, for his part, was outwardly unaffected. His pride was a little hurt that Remus seemed to believe that he was wrong, but he pushed that aside. If Remus had actually found the kitchens, then James could handle his bruised pride.

"Today, " Remus continued after it was clear James wasn't upset, "While I was searching around the dungeons, I saw a few house elves scurrying around and followed them, hoping they would lead me where I wanted to go. I was in luck and they headed back to the kitchen, even showing me how to get through the hidden doorway! I wrote it all down here, along with what Sirius and Peter discussed.

"I thought it might come in handy later to know where these things were located." Remus added, nervously rubbing the back of his head. He seemed very uncertain about the whole thing. James burst out into a wide smile.

"Brilliant!" James exclaimed, reaching out for the paper to examine it further. "This will definitely come in handy later. Now, about how to get into the kitchen."

* * *

The Hogwarts Halloween feast was absolutely spectacular. For the magical community, the muggle holiday of Halloween was a big deal. After the International Statute of Secrecy, the celebrations of All Hallows Eve allowed the magical community the opportunity to come out of hiding for the day. Now, with the changing theme of celebrations, the holiday didn't afford the same freedoms, but the magical community still put a lot into the celebrations.

The Great Hall was decorated with traditional fall decorations like leaves and various squashes. There were jack o' lanterns throughout the room, each one carved with a unique face. On each of the tables was one of the largest feasts James had ever seen. It was almost as large as the going away extravaganza his mother had cooked before he left for Hogwarts. It smelled delicious, looked amazing, and James couldn't wait to dig in.

"Good evening," Dumbledore spoke from the middle of the staff table, "Today, we celebrate the ancient holiday of Halloween, a significant holiday for the magical community. Enjoy the good food and company tonight. Forget about your schoolwork and other worries for the evening and just enjoy! Bon appetite!"

With his short speech over, Dumbledore sat down and motioned for all those gathered to start feasting. James, Sirius, Peter, and Remus readily obliged, as did the rest of the student body. The Great Hall quickly filled with the sounds of forks and knives contacting plates and the light hum of conversation.

"This roast is almost as good as my Mums! She'd always cook roast on the days we were celebrating something. Birthdays, anniversaries, holidays that weren't Christmas. On the morning before I caught the train here, she made me this big going away breakfast feast and she even cooked a roast for that!" James eagerly discussed life at home in between bites of roast, potatoes, and various steamed vegetables.

"My mum would rather talk to a muggle than cook for us. Any and all food that is made and prepared in our house is done by the house elf. The food here is so much better than what I'd get back there." Sirius shuddered at the memory of his elf-prepared food from back home.

"But this food is prepared by elves?" Peter asked, lowering his voice to a whisper. He was obviously unsure if that piece of information was something he should know, and if knowing it could get him in trouble.

"Yes, but this food is made by happy elves who enjoy their work and know what they're doing. Not the freakishly loyal, obsessed creatures my mother keeps." Sirius punctuated his speech by popping a piece of potato into his mouth.

"My mum's a really good cook too. Except not with anything this fancy. I do love her cooking, but it's really nice to try some of these finer dishes. Most of what we eat at home is simple soups made with vegetables from the garden or the basic meat and potatoes sort of fair." Remus spoke. James was a little surprised at the openness of Remus' comments.

Over the past two months, the skinny boy had begun to spend more and more time with the other Gryffindor first years, and he'd eagerly contributed to the planning and execution of that evenings' prank. But he still kept his home life, his private life, fairly secret from the others. James was constantly going on about life with his parents, and Sirius would join in with his complaints. Peter would occasionally comment about his family, but Remus never said a word. To have him opening up now was a good sign for James.

"Sometimes the simplest food can taste the best," Sirius commented, "Kreacher, our house elf, attempts these really fancy, really convoluted recipes to try and impress my mother and he always fails. What I wouldn't give for a simple vegetable soup instead of a rancid duck d'orange!" Sirius popped another potato into his mouth. As he did so, the serving platters of food disappeared and were replaced by platters filled with desserts. A glint quickly developed in Sirius' eye.

Once again, people quickly began digging into their desserts. There was a large selection but the most prevalent, and the most popular, were the pumpkin pasties. Nearly everyone in the Great Hall dug into them eagerly.

Suddenly, a concerned yelp went up from someone in the Hufflepuff table. Students turned to see what was going on. One of the upperclassmen had gone a truly awful puce colour. His companion, the one who had shrieked, had quickly run around to the back of the now purple boy and began trying to dislodge whatever it was that was turning his friend purple. It was obvious that the one boy thought his friend was choking.

However, the purple Hufflepuff was not chocking and, when he tried to explain this to his worried friend, his words came out in gibberish.

"Flag flum flor flo!" the purple boy tried to explain. His friend, caught off guard, stopped his actions and simply stared. Then, someone from Ravenclaw also shouted out.

"Percy! You're turning purple!"

Like a slow ripple, cries began to fill the room as more and more people turned purple. Then, much like the Hufflepuff, when they tried to speak, all that would come out was intelligible speech.

"We've been pranked!" a high-pitched voice echoed above the gibberish. Instantly, everyone began to panic, unsure of what had caused the colour change and loss of speech. Some of the people, those who had not been afflicted, began to chuckle then all out laugh at the predicament of their comrades.

As the gibberish began to be overtaken by peals of laughter, James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter smirked at the chaos they'd induced. This was their biggest prank yet, the most complicated with the biggest payoff. Seeing it all come to fruition was highly satisfying.

However, their moment of triumph and victory was short lived. The professors quickly began taking control and searching out the perpetrators. Professor McGonagall in particular was homing in on the four male Gryffindor first years. Others followed her lead. James and Sirius were quickly establishing a reputation for pranking. Now that this one had occurred, the boys were their prime suspects.

When the professors showed up at the Gryffindor table, however, they found James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter all purple-coloured and speaking gibberish. Not perpetrators, but simply more victims. It was an ingenious way to cover their guilt. None of the professors, except Professor McGonagall, now believed that the four were responsible.

They'd gotten away with it, their first major prank. They were, in that moment, practically invincible. Now, all that remained for their crowning as prankster kings to be complete was for a rumour of their involvement to being to circulate throughout the student body. Once the students' knew who was responsible, and the staff unable to concretely prove it, they would be royalty.


	14. Chapter 13: Onto the Pitch Into the Air

**Chapter Thirteen**

**Onto the Pitch; Into the Air**

* * *

_Sports do not build character. They reveal it._

_~John Wooden_

* * *

Whispers followed them around wherever they went. In the hallways, in classes, at meals, even while they were working in the library. Ever since the Halloween feast, it seemed that all the school could talk about was the prank and the fact that four first year Gryffindors had been the ones responsible.

James and Sirius were taking this newfound fame extremely well. They were walking throughout the castle with their heads held high. Their gait had even changed, becoming more arrogant and self-assured. All the talk about their exploits made the pair feel like kings. Peter, as well, was really enjoying the attention, though he didn't show it as outwardly as the others. His meek nature only seemed to allow him to internally revel in the attention. Remus, however, was less than enthused. In fact, he seemed to be pulling away from the other three.

James was a little worried, but this wasn't the first time that Remus had pulled away from them. A few weeks ago, James had noticed Remus getting sicker and sicker and with each day that passed; and as Remus got sicker, he seemed less and less inclined to spend time with James, Sirius, and Peter. Remus wouldn't sit with them at meals or in class. He would quickly run away to the library whenever they had a moment of free time and if anyone tried to follow him, he would disappear within the stacks. James had gotten so worried that he was about to confront Remus about his behaviour when the other boy seemed to get over his sickness and his aversion to his fellow first years.

This time though, Remus separation wasn't sickness related, at least not that James could see. Maybe, James thought, Remus wasn't as big a fan of the spotlight as the other boys were. Hopefully, though, he would come back to his friends like he had before.

About a week after the prank, and Remus' isolation, James was fed up. He had worked hard to befriend the sandy haired boy and now it was all being thrown away because of a little school-based infamy. James didn't think that was a good enough reason. That night, as Remus stood from the Great Hall dinner and headed off to the library, James told Sirius and Peter that he would meet them in the common room later. James then stood and, as sneakily as possible, followed Remus. He didn't want the other boy to know that he was following him lest it lead to a disappearing act. James wanted to confront Remus, but he didn't want to have to search him out first.

They arrived at the library and James took a table a few away from Remus and behind him. The other boy would only notice James' presence if he fully turned around. While James was observing Remus, he began to overhear a fairly loud whispered conversation from a few tables over. Instantly, James' attention was captured, and he momentarily forgot about his mission to speak to Remus.

"Them?" A sixth-year Ravenclaw girl at the table beside James whispered rather loudly, "but they're only first years!" Almost as if with a sixth sense, James knew the two girls were discussing the prank he and his friends played. He turned from Remus to the two girls and continued listening in to their conversation.

"That's what Lucille told me. She overheard several guys talking about it. One of them saw the four of them sneak into the kitchen the day before!" her friend responded, equally as loud.

"I don't believe it! That magic was far too complicated for first years!" the first Ravenclaw spoke again. James felt his chest puff and his head swell. Here was two sixth year girls, girls who had much more experience with magic than he himself had, in a state of disbelief at what he, Sirius, Remus, and Peter had managed to pull off. It was a compliment that went straight to his head.

"Maybe they have some secret hidden talents or something. I'm just saying that that's what Luce told me!" James continued to sit in his spot, soaking in the praise that was being lavished upon him. He had completely forgotten about his reason for coming to the library in the first place. His mind was completely filled with himself and his exploits.

James' year at Hogwarts was going absolutely fantastically. The only thing that could make it better would be Quidditch and the first game of the season was only a few days away.

* * *

The month of November had dawned cool and crisp at Hogwarts. Frost hung in the air and the threat of snow was omnipresent. The castle was heated with magical flames, but as James and his friends quickly discovered, the fires were only in used sections of the castle. Little travelled hallways and hidden passageways were frigid. The weather put a damper on the boys' extracurricular explorations of the castle, but definitely not on their spirits

On the morning of the match, the first sunny day in a week, James woke up before the sun. He was far too excited to sleep a minute longer. Today would be the day he would finally see a Quidditch match at Hogwarts. He had gone to professional Quidditch games before, quite a few times, but there was something extra special about the match at Hogwarts. Maybe it was the fact that James was pretty sure he was only a short year away from actually being a member on the team at Hogwarts, unlike a professional team.

Sirius woke up about an hour after James. He was likewise as excited as James. The two passed the hours until it was time for breakfast eagerly, a little loudly, discussing the different moves and plays they might see that day. Their exuberant conversation quickly woke Peter and Remus and all four boys began talking about the game. It seemed, much to James' pleasure, that everyone was looking forward to today.

"Alright, gents. It's time we head down to the pitch! Want to make sure we get really amazing seats!" James exclaimed when it was finally time for breakfast. He then stood from his bed, wrapping his red scarf around his neck and leading the boys out of their dorm room.

* * *

A pudgy dark haired Hufflepuff named Donald Karlson announced Quidditch games at Hogwarts. He had a deep, animated voice perfect for calling matches. James suspected that he'd end up in radio one day; he had that type of voice. Karlson began the match by commenting on the weather conditions and the fact that this rivalry, the Gryffindor-Slytherin one, was deep-seated and long-standing. It was simple, colour commentary type stuff.

Finally, the two teams walked onto the pitch. The flying instructor Karl Broadmoor followed behind. He was wearing referee robes and carrying a Quidditch ball trunk. Everyone down on the pitch prepared for the start of the match and, after completing the traditional pre-game routines, Broadmoor released the Snitch and the Quaffle and the game began.

"Young third year chaser for Gryffindor, Vincent Price, has the Quaffle. He expertly weaves through Slytherin's defence. Wow, that bludger was close! Excellent broom work, Price. He passes to Longbottom –that's Frank Longbottom, Gryffindor prefect- who positions for the goal… and it's good! Ten points for Gryffindor!" Karlson announced, his voice rising and falling in excitement to help amplify the mood of the crowd.

James was vibrating. He was leaning far over the railing, almost like he was trying to get onto the pitch. He had to remind himself that he would get there soon enough, and it wouldn't be by launching himself from the stands. He took a step back and watched the rest of the game, trying to contain his pure excitement.

"And another goal by Cornish! That makes the score 60 to 10 for Gryffindor!" Karlson exclaimed into the megaphone like contraption that projected his voice throughout the crowd. All those rooting for Gryffindor erupted into cheers and screams of joy. It was only about fifteen to twenty minutes into the game and already Gryffindor was up by 50 points. They were absolutely dominating Slytherin.

"Slytherin is just absolutely imploding! It's like they've never even flown before!" James screamed joyfully. It looked like a few of the members of the Slytherin team had never flown before. Their keeper, a huge hulking player, kept dropping feet below the goal posts he was meant to be guarding and then had to fight to regain and retain the altitude that he needed. Also, two of the three chasers seemed slightly confounded. They dropped the Quaffle a few times and flew in slightly the wrong direction. It was, on the whole, fairly subtle but James, having watched several Quidditch matches, quickly picked up on it.

'Maybe,' he thought, trying to explain it, 'Maybe Quidditch at Hogwarts is significantly below the professional level. Or at least in Slytherin house.' That thought made him smile. Slytherin sucking at Quidditch was fabulous news.

"And Cadwallader scores for Slytherin! 20 to 60 is where the score stands now. The Quaffle is quickly back in play and in the hands of Slytherin's most senior player Bulstrode! Bulstrode passes to Cadwallader. Cadwallader dodges a bludger sent his way by O'Donnell. That was nearly on target! Cadwallader is being charged by Gryffindor chasers Longbottom and Cornish and quickly passes the Quaffle to Bletchley who shoots and… it's good! 30 to 60!" Karlson's commentary quickly drew James from his observations of the Slytherins and back into the game. Whatever he had seen in the Slytherin players only moments ago was gone and they seemed somehow rejuvenated.

Something about the whole thing seemed off, smelled fishy, and stuck in the back of James' mind, but he was too invested in the game before him to really worry about it too much at that particular moment.

* * *

For James' first Quidditch game at Hogwarts, he had been treated a crazy, topsy-turvy game. Just when he thought he knew the outcome, something came around and changed his mind. It was a truly exhilarating game.

In total up to that point, James and the other Hogwarts students had witnessed sixty minutes of Quidditch. The first 20 to 25 minutes had been a game of near total Gryffindor domination. They scored six times in that period of time and Slytherin's players looked like they were asleep. Then something changed. Whatever had been going on with Slytherin in that first part of the game stopped and Slytherin turned their game on high.

Quickly, the score switched; Gryffindor gave up their lead and then some. After an hour of play the score was 150 for Slytherin, 70 for Gryffindor. The previously celebratory Gryffindors now sat in stunned silence and the Slytherins became loud and boisterous. They sang songs that mocked various Gryffindor players and verbally ribbed players and fans alike.

The turnaround was extremely drastic, and James felt he could no longer ignore his thoughts from before. Maybe the Slytherins who appeared confounded actually were, hindering their game. Then the spell had worn off and the true abilities of Slytherin shone through. But that seemed crazy to James. This game, in the grand scheme of that year's Quidditch Cup, was minimally important. So, there wasn't really an incentive to cheat in this game.

But still, something felt wrong about it.

"Uh oh! It would appear as if Bulstrode's broom is malfunctioning! Mister Broadmoor has called a pause to the game play as this matter is sorted out," the announcer, Karlson spoke, his voice surprised, but not necessarily concerned. Bulstrode's broom was acting as if it was trying to throw him off. It would jerk violently right then violently left. It then dropped straight down for several hundred feet before quickly righting itself. Someone had obviously jinxed his broom.

"What's this? Now the Slytherin keeper, McNair can't seem to control his broom! And there goes Bletchley! Nice figure eight, though!" As Broadmoor had gone after Bulstrode and his malfunctioning broom, the other members of the Slytherin team lost control of their brooms one after another, like dominoes. The keeper's broom returned to the dropping action that it had been doing previously, but much more exaggerated. Bletchley, one of the Slytherin chasers, looked like he was performing some sort of aerial ballet, with flips, figure eights, and other intricate manoeuvres. Then Cadwallader's broom began flying at top speeds toward the stands and the spectators before quickly veering off at the last moment.

"That looks like the same spell you and Sirius put on Snape's broom during out first flying lesson," Remus whispered to James as they watched Cadwallader be dragged along by his broom. It seemed Remus wasn't the only one to make this observation; whispers quickly erupted in all sections of the stands from first years and then older students. People then began shooting James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter looks like they thought those four may have had something to do with it all. As well, whispers began to spread that maybe the Gryffindor team or Gryffindor students had jinxed the brooms. This second set of whispers combined with the first set and even more stares and glances were shot in the first years' direction.

James slunk down in his seat. He enjoyed the whispers when they were positive, about fun and joking pranks he had pulled, but when they were about real misdeeds that he hadn't even done, he really hated them.

* * *

After twenty minutes, Broadmoor was able to get control of the brooms. Because the jinxes that had been placed on them were unknown, they couldn't be completely removed. Professor Strinkley had volunteered to take the brooms and carefully examine them, but the Slytherin team insisted on continuing the game and on their own brooms. So, Professor Strinkley performed a quick blanket anti-jinx on the brooms and the game continued.

It was absolutely devastating. Despite the occasional jinx-related glitch with the brooms, Slytherin dominated Gryffindor. The game lasted for another thirty minutes, and the final score was 400 to 100 with the Slytherin seeker, and team captain, Alectus Warrington, catching the snitch. As soon as his hand had closed around the small golden ball, the other Slytherin players were thrown from their brooms. Headmaster Dumbledore acted quickly enough to slow down all the thrown players so that not one of them was injured.

As soon as the students gently landed on the pitch grass, Professor Strinkley seized their brooms to determine what, and possibly even who, had jinxed the brooms. Mister Broadmoor corralled the Gryffindor players, the obvious culprits. The jinxing had only really begun to occur after Gryffindor started to loose. Slowly, Professor McGonagall, head of Gryffindor house, and Professor Slughorn, head of Slytherin house, made their way down to the pitch to oversee the situation. Then, all the students in the stands were dismissed.

As they all filed out, the only topic of conversation for every single student was what had happened and whom they thought was responsible.

"That was so crazy! Someone jinxing the _whole _Slytherin Quidditch team? And then Cadwallader's broom behaving exactly like Snape's? Crazy! I wonder who would have done such a thing?" Peter mused and exclaimed, obviously excited about all of the events.

"Not sure, Pete. Sort of looks like us, so maybe we should talk later. In private. I mean, we didn't do anything here, but best to not discuss it so openly," Sirius responded. James, who had been unnaturally quiet, seemed to agree with Sirius' statement and the four didn't say another word as they made their way through the stands, and down towards the ground.

About halfway between the castle and the stands, Professor McGonagall stood off to the side, observing the stream of students. She looked at James, making direct eye contact with him. It was obvious to James that she wanted to talk to them. The four slowly began making their way towards the professor.

"Professor?" James spoke, making his address a question about what she wanted.

"Mr. Potter. Mr. Black. A word, please. Alone," her words were short, her tone clipped. It was obvious she was upset. James felt himself pale as he realised that he and Sirius were about to be blamed, or at the very least looked at extremely carefully, for the events that had just occurred.

"Of course, Professor," James responded, moving to follow her into the castle. Remus and Peter stood rooted in place watching their friends leave.


	15. Chapter 14: A Very Potter Christmas

**Chapter Fourteen**

**A Very Potter Christmas**

* * *

_Home is a place you grow up wanting to leave, and grow old wanting to get back to_

_~John Ed Pearce_

* * *

"Honestly, Professor. We didn't have anything to do with this! We were just as shocked and appalled by what happened as everyone else. Sure, we wanted Gryffindor to win, but win fairly. Winning by cheating cheapens the game and the win," Remus spoke, his eyes wide as he attempted to convince Professor McGonagall of his and his friends' innocence. It had been several weeks since the Quidditch game and, despite an investigation conducted by Professor Strinkley, Professor Slughorn, and Mister Broadmoor, no suspects had been established.

The jinxes placed on the broom were at a second year level, meaning there was a wide suspect pool of anyone able to perform second year magic. The jinxes had been difficult to deal with because multiple jinxes had been cast on each broom. It had taken Professor Strinkley about an hour to remove all the jinxes on all the brooms as a result. However, aside from the same jinx being used on Cadwallader's broom as Sirius had placed on Snape's, there was nothing about the jinxes that linked them to any person or group.

The Gryffindor team was quickly cleared because, as per Hogwarts Quidditch regulations, they'd left their wands in the changing rooms and had no opportunity to jinx the brooms. Suspicion then shifted to James and Sirius. They were where Professor McGonagall's suspicions had rooted in particular. Aside from the jinx similarity, James and Sirius had come into contact with the Slytherin team's brooms when they'd cleaned them during detention. However, other Professors had cleared them because the pair had been in with the brooms without their wands. They, too, didn't really have an opportunity.

Yet, Professor McGonagall was still suspicious. They'd gotten away with the Halloween incident. Who was to say that they hadn't done it again? Because of this, Professor McGonagall had taken to questioning the boys repeatedly, most likely trying to catch them in a lie. When James and Sirius had failed to convince McGonagall of their innocence, they'd turned to Remus. He was the only one who hadn't faced detentions, so there was a slight hope that he would be more believable.

So far, that hadn't been the case.

"I would like to believe you, Mr. Lupin. However, the track records of Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, and even Mr. Pettigrew make it hard to take them at their word. The evidence of who committed the act against the Slytherin's is unclear, but some of it points towards them. I sincerely hope it isn't the case, but I can't dismiss them as suspects yet," Professor McGonagall responded. She truly did look sorry, and the boys hoped that would come to outweigh her suspicions.

However, as the month of November passed, it seemed that McGonagall remained steadfast. For their part, the four Gryffindor first years, chose to spend the last few weeks of their first semester focused solely on their schoolwork. McGonagall was keeping an extra close eye on them, and it made pulling off even a small prank against Snape extremely difficult. She seemed to be everywhere all the time. But the quartet had resolved, once their winter break was over, and the heat of the Quidditch incident had died down a little, they would be back with a vengeance.

* * *

The whole thing with the Slytherin brooms had also put James' hackles up. As he and Sirius were marched behind Professor McGonagall up to her office after the match, James remembered the strange sight he'd seen between Professor Strinkley and an upper class Slytherin. James now recognized him as a member of the Slytherin team, and as a result of that revelation, James now found the already suspicious situation even more suspect.

"It must have been then, when I saw them in the hallway! They must have been plotting something then. I don't know why they would want to throw the match, ruin their own chances at victory and even lessen the odds that they would make the Quidditch House Cup," James spoke, emphatically. He waved his hands around as he did so, causing the small bit of egg he had skewered on his fork to go flying.

"I don't know, James. That seems a little far-fetched. Even you can't come up with a reason for it. Why would they tamper with their own brooms?" Remus asked. James gave his friend an exasperated look. While Sirius, and especially Peter, were usually pretty easy to convince of his point of view, Remus was always a little more resistant. He required actual proof before he believed something.

"Well, who else would it be? This was the first match of the season. No one had any real stakes in who won or lost the game. There was no point to it. But, if the Slytherins are plotting something bigger, this could only be the first step. We should keep an eye on them, see if we can spot any other suspicious behaviours."

"But we have been looking in on Strinkley, trying to see if we can come up with a fireable offence, and we haven't gotten anywhere. Maybe what you saw was a one-off," Sirius spoke, shovelling in potatoes in between his sentences.

"Or, maybe they are done meeting with Strinkley and are meeting with someone else, somewhere else." James wasn't about to let this drop. He had a feeling about all of this and, when he thought he was right, he wasn't about to let it slip through his hands.

"That makes sense," Peter piped up.

"But where would we even start to look?" Remus added. James was getting a little annoyed at Remus' negative Nancy act, but he bit his tongue. Normally, James would have gotten angry, maybe even lashed out, but his relationship with Remus was already in a precarious position. He didn't want to push the other boy away.

"Fine," James grumbled, conceding. "But if there is something else suspicious that happens and the Slytherins have any role in it, even if they are the victims, we should put in a real effort. Two strange events cannot be a coincidence." James looked at his other friends who all seemed to agree with what he said.

Hopefully, there would be something that would happen, but James was pretty sure it wouldn't before the Christmas break. There was only two weeks left until then.

* * *

Finally, the semester came to an end and Christmas break was upon the Hogwarts students. James was excited to be heading home to see his parents and regale them with all the adventures he'd had. His possible guilt in the Quidditch debacle still hung over his head and threatened to dampen his spirits, but James tried his best to ignore it all.

He quickly packed his trunk and ran nearly as fast as he could down to the train. He and Sirius sat in the same compartment they shared on their first trip to Hogwarts. This time, though, Peter and Remus joined them. Remus looked almost as excited as James. The sandy haired boy had spent the days leading up to the break enthusiastically talking about all his family traditions, and now he was nearly bouncing. James had only become more and more pleased the more Remus talked about his family. The messy haired boy had known that his persistence would eventually pay off. The skinny, sandy haired boy was no longer reserved and apart. He was a full-fledged member of their group.

Peter had said he was happy to be returning home and he looked it, but James sensed there was something keeping him from being completely joy filled about the holiday. Something in Peter's eyes, concern and worry, kept James from fully believing the mousy boy. There was some aspect of the coming holiday that had put Peter slightly on edge, but he was very good at hiding it.

For his part, Sirius looked like he'd rather be writing a twelve-foot paper than going home. Sirius had mentioned he didn't get along all that well with his family, but James hadn't really understood the extent until he saw his friend's less than enthusiastic expression as they sat on the train for home. Sirius had complained about his parent's on several occasions, but James had assumed that was just a young boy upset at his parent's strictness, but maybe it was more than that.

"Anyone for a game of exploding snap?" James asked, trying to distract Sirius and Peter from their thoughts and emotions. Peter quickly chimed in, followed by Remus. Sirius seemed to be a little reluctant, but James chose to interpret that as a by-product of the shaggy haired boy's foul mood. However, after only a few rounds of the game, all four members of the compartment were quite loud and raucous, thoroughly enjoying their game.

As they were enjoying themselves, James caught a glimpse of Severus Snape and Lily Evans making their way through the hall. Lily was clearly animated and eager, talking and gesticulating. She had a wide smile on her face and a shimmer in her eyes. In stark contrast, Snape had his shoulders hunched, his head hung low and a sour expression on his face. He looked very similar to Sirius whenever someone mentioned the holidays. Maybe Snape, too, was not looking forward to the time off with family.

However, James wasn't given too much time to dwell on the thought because Lily and Snape quickly moved on and the current game of exploding snap quickly drew back his attention. The foursome spent the rest of the train ride playing various card games and devising new pranks and hijinks they could inflict on the castle when they returned from the break.

Finally, the Hogwarts Express pulled into King's Cross station and the students disembarked and began their vacation.

* * *

James hoped off the train, mid-sentence. Sirius quickly followed suit, and they were followed by Remus and Peter. James was animatedly talking about a Quidditch match his father had taken him to a year before and the crazy play that one of the chasers had performed. He was so involved in the conversation that he didn't even realise when Peter and Remus left to join their parents, or when he walked right passed his own.

"Jamie are you planning on going home with your new friend there?" the sweet voice of his mother asked. The sound jarred James and he stopped in the middle of his stride. He spun on his heel and turned to see his parents smiling faces. Overcome with emotions, James quickly ran to his parents and embraced them, his exuberance nearly knocking them over.

"Careful Jamie," his father spoke, a chuckle in his voice.

"Sorry, dad. I just missed you."

"We missed you too Jamie. Now, are you going to introduce us to your new friend?" his mother asked. She smiled warmly at Sirius, who was standing rather awkwardly a few feet away, witnessing the happy family reunion.

"Oh right! This is Sirius Black! We're both in Gryffindor. We both love Quidditch! And he's an absolutely brilliant spell caster. And then there's Peter and Remus," James whirled around, looking for his other two friends. When he didn't find them, he made a waving dismissive motion. "I'll point them out after Christmas."

Euphemia laughed at the rapid fire pace her son was speaking at. She smiled warmly at Sirius and addressed her next question to him. "Are your parents picking you up? If they aren't here yet we can wait for them with you. The train was a little bit on the early side today."

Sirius looked down at his shoes when he responded. "No, that's okay. My parents said they'd meet me outside. They think the station is too busy, so they prefer not to come in. I'll be fine. Thanks though, Mrs. Potter." Sirius spoke quickly, then smiled up at the Potters before turning on his heel and heading into the crowd. James saw his parents share a strange look, but he wasn't quite sure what it meant.

"Alright, Jamie. Let's head home!" his father finally spoke, cupping the young boy on the shoulder before picking up his bag and following in the same direction as Sirius had gone.

* * *

James sat on the floor in front of the large Potter Christmas tree. Wrapping paper was spread throughout the floor surrounding him. A wide smile was plastered on his face. This Christmas had been absolutely perfect. The night before, the extended Potter family and many of the Potter's friends had gathered at the mansion to celebrate with copious amounts of food, drink, and good cheer. The party had gone late into the night as the revelatory party-goes thoroughly enjoyed themselves.

James had been excited to regale his family and his parents' friends with tales of his Hogwarts adventures. He talked about all the magic he was learning, the Quidditch he'd witnessed, the tomfoolery he'd been involved in. He even broached the subject of the strange behaviour he'd witnessed between Strinkley and the Slytherins, and his belief in how it connected to what happened at the first Quidditch match of the season. The group that had gathered around to hear James' tales hesitantly agreed. None of them really knew Strinkley, he was a fair amount younger, but they all didn't trust a Slytherin, especially one that had already shown he played favourites and was untrustworthy. James enjoyed every minute of it.

Then, on Christmas morning, James had awoken early and gone down to see the family tree with a mountain of presents beneath it. Most were for James, gifts from the guests of the party as well as his parents. His eyes wide, James sat down on the floor in front of the tree and took it all in. He didn't think himself spoiled, he didn't need, want, or expect the gifts that he got, but that didn't mean he didn't appreciate the gifts.

Somehow, and he wasn't quite sure how he managed it, James waited until his parents joined him. They only slept about twenty minutes longer than James had, early risers that they were, but it still felt like an eternity. While his parents sipped their morning coffee, James tore into the stack of presents. With each gift that James had opened, his joy had only increased. Now, having opened the last gift, James sat and took in the moment.

Christmas was his favourite time of year and this one hadn't failed to deliver in joy, merriness, and general Christmas spirit. It had truly been a very merry Potter Christmas.


	16. Chapter 15: The Return

**Chapter Fifteen **

**The Return**

* * *

_Rivalry adds so much to the charms of one's conquests_

_~Louisa May Alcott_

* * *

James and his parents hurried through the holiday crowds at King's Cross. It appeared that everyone had chosen that day to end their breaks and return to their regular lives. The stations were packed full of busy travellers who looked stressed out and in a rush. It made James, who had previously been excited about returning to school feel stressed out and anxious too. All he wanted was to get on the train, leave all these crazy muggles, and be back with his friends.

It took them nearly four tries to get through the barrier. Every time they attempted it, there were muggles looking, curious about what three people were doing standings around and moving towards a wall. They were finally able to make it through when James' father distracted the crowd.

They slipped through the passageway and onto the platform and James felt a sense of relief wash over him. The chaos of the larger station was forgotten in the relative intimacy of platform 9 ¾. Unlike at the start of term, the platform wasn't filled. Not everyone left Hogwarts for Christmas break and so therefore they didn't need to return.

James quickly spotted Sirius, standing only a few feet from the entrance to the platform. He was alone again, his parents nowhere to be seen. James wondered about it for a second (Sirius's parents hadn't been there to pick him up and now weren't there to drop him off), but he was quickly overcome with the joy of seeing his friend.

"Sirius!" he called. At the sound of his name, the other boy turned, and a wide smile broke across his face. James' parents followed a few steps behind. They were smiling warmly at Sirius, though they both had looks of slight concern.

"Hey James! Good holiday?" Sirius asked once the two boys were only a few feet from each other. James nodded in response, then turned to his parents. When he'd first left for Hogwarts, it had been a hard goodbye, but now that he had friends and knew what adventures were awaiting him, he couldn't wait to get on the train.

"I think I'll be fine from here. Sirius and I can manage on our own. I'll write to you as soon as I'm back!" James embraced his parents and they said their goodbyes, his mother almost smothering the messy haired boy in loving kisses. Then James and Sirius turned and disappeared through the wall and back onto the platform.

* * *

Once back at school, the students quickly fell back into old routines. They attended classes, worked on assignments, and practiced the magic they'd been taught. A sense of calm and normalcy settled over the school. Whispers of the Halloween prank and, more prominently, the Gryffindor-Slytherin match still filled the air, but as time passed, the students moved on. They had their own problems and concerns.

For their part, the return to Hogwarts for James and Sirius meant a return to tormenting Snape at every opportunity. In the space between Halloween and Christmas, the duo had temporarily ceased any misbehaviour, already feeling enough heat from events they hadn't been a part of.

However, with the school moving on, and Professor McGonagall ceasing her, for lack of a better term, interrogations, James and Sirius felt they could return to their old ways. They started small, by vanishing his books from his bag, or his hands, or from right in front of his face. As the weeks had passed and nothing terrible had come down on them, James and Sirius got bolder in their efforts.

"Here he comes," Sirius whispered, craning his neck around a corner. He was acting as a lookout, while James sat hunched in an alcove behind a statue, scribbling something onto a piece of paper. Sirius squeezed behind the statue to join James. "You almost ready? He'll be here any minute."

"Just about, and, done!" James exclaimed with a flourish. He then slipped the paper out from behind the statue and onto the hallway floor. It stopped just as a pair of extremely worn, scuffed shoes came into view. The shoes halted in front of the sheet and someone reached down to pick it up.

A mop of greasy hair fell in front of the person's face as they bent down, but James and Sirius knew it was Snape. They high fived each other, proud of their success at capturing their target. Snape picked up the paper; a map that James had created that led to a secret passageway that claimed it would shave two minutes off the trip to the Defence Against the Dark Arts classroom.

Snape looked around, probably trying to see who had dropped it. When he could spot no one, he looked back down at the paper and a satisfied smile crossed his face. He thought it was his lucky day, and quickly headed off in the direction the map led him.

Sirius and James snickered as they appeared from behind the statue. They celebrated their victory a little, another successful prank committed against Snivellus. After a few seconds, the pair collected themselves and headed off in the correct direction of the DADA classroom.

"Wonder how long it'll take him to get out of our little trap," James mused as he walked into the classroom and glanced at Snape's regular spot. With only a minute before Professor Strinkley began his lesson, his spot was conspicuously empty. James and Sirius high fived once more before taking their seats and preparing for the class.

It wasn't until ten minutes into the lecture that Snivellus finally appeared, looking slightly crazed. He tried to explain his tardiness, stating he'd been caught in a dead end hallway that had then closed in on him and trapped him, but Professor Strinkley wasn't buying it. For the first time that year, Strinkley took points away from Slytherin house. James and Sirius inconspicuously high fived for what felt like the millionth time that day. It sure was good to be back!

* * *

"And your foot-long essay on the proper care techniques for Devil's Snare is due on Friday!" Professor Greensleigh reminded as the first-years packed up and left the greenhouse. James groaned at the reminder, having forgotten the paper completely. He'd been far too preoccupied with the uptick in pranking he and Sirius had been doing to remember his schoolwork. Now, he'd have two days to research and write it, as well as finish all his other work.

"Any one up for the library tonight? I forgot about Greensleigh's essay. Then there's Flitwick's warming charm that needs to be perfected by Monday, the wand movement and proper incantation explanation for the square to circle button transfiguration for Professor McGonagall also on Friday. And then whatever it was Professor Strinkley wanted us to do. I could really use some company," James spoke as the students' carefully made their way across the snow-covered grounds and back up to the castle.

"I'm a little behind too," Peter piped up, "can't seem to get my water anywhere close to lukewarm." Peter looked down at his feet, slightly embarrassed at his poor skills.

"You really should spend less time pestering others and spend more time on your schoolwork," Remus responded, though he spoke barely above a whisper. James took it to mean that Remus wanted to say his piece, but he also didn't want to upset his friends.

"You should listen to your friend! No one's ever failed out of first year, but I guess there's always a first time for everything," a snide voice spoke from behind the small group. James quickly spun around, ready to confront whomever had the audacity to insult his magical prowess. Sure, James' schoolwork was average, and his work ethic far below, but his practical magical ability was beyond reproach and would most certainly ensure his continued enrolment at the school.

A wry smile crossed James' face as he saw who had spoken.

"You're one to talk, Snivellus. Couldn't even find your Charms book in class! How do you expect to remain in Hogwarts if you can't even keep track of your stuff? You should really be more careful." James then turned back around and, with his back to Snape, magically tied the other boy's shoelaces together. As soon as Snape took a single step, he topped over, landing face first in the snow.

Laughter erupted from all those surrounding Snape. James turned back around, smirking down at Snape.

"Proving my point already," he spoke cockily, clearly extremely proud with himself.

* * *

That evening found James, along with Sirius, Peter, and Remus, sitting at a table in the library as James had said he would be. The table was filled with books, papers, scraps of parchment, ink and broken quills, and a smattering of square and circular buttons. There was also a cup of water, bubbling and boiling, on an unoccupied chair. The boys had gathered all the supplies they needed to complete their work and settled in for what looked like hours.

Sirius was pouring through Herbology textbooks and even issues of Witch Weekly and Green Wand, a magazine about magical gardening, for any tips and techniques on caring for the extremely tricky, and potentially lethal, Devil's Snare. James was working on putting the final finishing flourishes on his transfiguration paper. He'd been practicing the button transfiguration to ensure that he had every part of the spell explained as perfectly as he could. Remus, having finished all his work earlier in the week, was helping Peter with his warming charm. Remus had been the one to get the water in the cup to boil; all Peter had been able to manage was barely warm enough to melt an ice cube placed in the water.

Suddenly, the buttons around the table began to shake, almost as if there was an earthquake that only affected the buttons. Then, they sprung up and began dancing an Irish jig. In succession, the books joined in. The four Gryffindors sat at their table, completely shocked and confused at what was going on.

A light chuckle drew their attention across the library. Sitting at a table a few over from them were Lily, Marlene McKinnon, and Victoria Chisholm, the small group Gryffindor first year girls that seemed almost as inseparable as the boys. There were other first year girls, of course, a few of them, but they were sort of periphery to this group's friendship.

"It isn't that great a feeling when someone messes with your things, huh?" Lily commented, lightly twirling her wand around between her fingers. She had a dark, almost sneer on her face that didn't quite seem to fit her otherwise soft and welcoming face.

"You did this? Charmed them to dance like this?" James asked, sounding more impressed by her actions than annoyed. He had to admit, it was some pretty complicated charm work. James knew there was a reason he liked her.

"You aren't the only one who can perform difficult spell work, James," Lily sing-songed. As she spoke, her sneer disappeared, and a look of pain clouded her features. It looked just as strange and foreign on her face as the sneer. Lily always seemed like such a happy person.

"I just wanted you to know what it feels like, to have someone else charm, or curse, or jinx you or your belongings. I'm not as cruel as you can be, so I'm not sure how effective it is. Please, leave Severus alone. He hasn't done anything to you. Ever. He only ever fights back when you attack or provoke first." As she spoke, tears filled her eyes and threatened to spill down her cheeks. She turned away, focusing back on her friends.

As soon as Lily had turned away, the books and buttons stopped their jig. The four Gryffindor boys were quiet for a few seconds, processing what had just happened. Sirius and James both looked sheepishly down at their hands after being reprimanded. Then, slowly, they focused back onto their work. Lily, Marlene, and Victoria left shortly after Lily's speech, allowing James to better concentrate on his work. He did have a lot to get done.

All four were once again so focused on their own tasks, that they didn't notice a figure approaching the table until he was right by them, looming over the first years. Sirius was the first to look up and spot chaser and prefect Frank Longbottom. Also approaching was the captain of the Gryffindor Quidditch team, Miles Coote. Both had purposeful looks on their faces.

"How can I help you gentlemen?" Sirius asked. His words dew the attention of the others at the table.

"We've come to speak to you. Specifically, you, Black, and you, Potter. As I'm sure you're aware, the next Gryffindor Quidditch match will be played in about three weeks' time. And I'm sure you all remember what happened last match," Coote, always the leader, spoke first. Pained, and slightly sad expressions crossed the face of the four first years.

"Unfortunately, despite a thorough investigation on the part of Professor Strinkley and Professor Slughorn, there is still a cloud of suspicion over Gryffindor house, and specifically the team and you four. A lot of people think that some combination of the team and you were responsible for jinxing the brooms. This has only increased because nothing happened in the other two games, when Gryffindor wasn't playing." Frank added, looking pointedly at James and Sirius.

"People are saying we only jinx teams we play directly, and not just teams whose losses could benefit us," Coote chimed in. James looked at both older boys, wondering where they were going with their story.

"So, just as a precaution," Frank spoke, suddenly looking slightly awkward and twisting his hands. He paused his speech, searching for the next words. It quickly became prolonged and Miles Coote got annoyed with it.

"Up to, and possibly slightly after, our next Quidditch match, we need you to stop pestering, or whatever you'd consider it, the Slytherin boy and, for that matter, anyone. If you don't do anything before the match, it'll be harder for people to blame you should something happen. Think you can do that?" Coote's tone was easy-going and conversational, but James couldn't help but feel like he was being threatened. Coote seemed to be implying that, if James and Sirius kept on with Snivellus and something happened at the Quidditch match, he would be sure to pin it on the two first years.

"Definitely. Bothering Snivellus is just a pastime. He gets annoying and uppity, so we mess with him to put him back in his place. But we can definitely lay off him for a month," James responded before anyone else said anything and without consulting the others. Coote turned to look at the other three, lingering on Sirius for a beat. The other three nodded in agreement with what James had said. Apparently satisfied with this, Coote then left. Frank, however, hung back for a moment.

"Just a piece of prefectural advice," Frank spoke, still looking slightly awkward, "You should be careful with how you treat Severus Snape. He, from what I've seen, hasn't done much to bother you or really invite mistreatment. To some, your pranks, as you call them, could come off as personal attacks and bullying. Just, you know, think about it." Having said his piece, Frank then left as well, jogging to catch up with Coote.

"That's what I've been saying," Remus spoke before turning back to the cup of water. James scowled at it all. He most definitely was not a bully.

* * *

Over the next week, James and Sirius simply avoided Snape. They walked quickly through the hallways whenever he was around, sat completely opposite of him in any classes they shared, and tried not to look in his general direction. James figured if Snape wasn't a part of their lives, temporarily, it would be easier to leave him alone.

Snape, for his part, seemed to be cooperating. Maybe he was finally getting wise to the fact that James and Sirius liked getting a rise out of him, liked seeing him react. Maybe he was still recuperating from the last time he tried to take on the pair and ended up with a face full of dirt. Whatever it was, Snape seemed to be laying low as well.

Then, just before the Gryffindor-Hufflepuff match, as the first year Gryffindors and Slytherins were brewing Pepper Up potions, Snape struck back. James was eager about this potion; some distant relative had invented it and the Potter's took it as a point of pride. James would have no problem brewing this one, unlike some of the others they'd been assigned.

Slughorn kept all the ingredients up at the front of the classroom, and made the students walk up and gather them as they went. James was easily moving through the steps of the potion when Snape walked by, having gone up to the front to retrieve something, and dumped a handful of some sort of green powder into James' cauldron.

His previously perfect Pepper Up potion, suddenly started shooting off colourful sparks, as if there were firecrackers in the potion. Snape just walked away, chuckling at the mayhem that he had created, as Professor Slughorn arrived to try and rectify the situation. At the end of the class, all James had to show for his work was a destroyed, and absolutely useless, Pepper Up potion. Slughorn had promised him another opportunity, but Snape hadn't been blamed because James and Sirius had been the only ones to see him put the powder into the cauldron.

Both boys had wanted to retaliate, had felt it deep in their bones, but they couldn't. They'd promised Longbottom and Coote. They wouldn't go back on their word.

"Snape had better watch his back after that match. We'll be coming for him harder than we ever have before," Sirius whispered through gritted teeth as they walked out of potions that afternoon.


	17. Chapter 16: Up to Something

**Chapter Sixteen**

**Up to Something**

* * *

_Fraud and falsehood only dread examination. Truth invites it._

_~Samuel Johnson_

* * *

Leading up to the mid-February Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff Quidditch match, James and Sirius kept their word. They didn't pull a single prank or do anything at all to Severus Snape. The Slytherin hadn't made it easy, either. After the lack of response to his Pepper Up potion sabotage, he seemed to grow in confidence. He'd shout out insults and taunts as the four Gryffindor's passed. Snape never went for another out and out attack, obviously too afraid to push his luck too far. Which, James had to admit, was smart of him. There was only so much James and Sirius could take before they forgot their word, went against their promise, and retaliated.

However, James and Sirius weren't completely idle. They'd found out they could still get a slight rise out of Snape based simply on their reputation. All they needed was to whisper to each other in his presence, or simply look suspicious and like they were up to something, and Snape would instantly start worrying. He would throw furtive glances at the pair and give them a wide berth.

"You know Sirius," James commented one chilly early February day as the first years once again made their way down to the Quidditch pitch for their flying lesson. They were walking right behind Snape, who was once again alone, taunting him with verbal threats.

"Know what, James?" Sirius responded. Both were talking rather loudly, ensuring that Snape could hear them. The greasy haired boy kept his head down and pretended to ignore the pair.

"It's been an awfully long time since we taught Snape anything. Maybe he's started to forget our lessons." As he walked, James kicked at the loose stones on the pathway. Several, much to James' delight, bounced off the back of Snape's legs, back, and butt.

"He has been getting rather uppity, lately. Shooting off his mouth. Doing some pretty stupid things in potions class. He could do for another lesson, I'd say." Sirius replied. He pulled his hands from his pockets and began rolling up his sleeves like he was preparing for something. Severus Snape picked up his pace, but the Gryffindor boys kept up with him.

"Of course," James continued, "we couldn't do something now. It would be too expected. No, we should wait a little. Lull Snivellus into a false sense of security and then strike when he's let his guard down." Sirius, James, and Peter then burst out into laughter and the foursome pushed passed Snape on their way down to the Quidditch pitch.

* * *

The temporary cessation of pranking also allowed James and Sirius more time to focus on other things like their schoolwork (which wasn't really a high priority), their continued exploration of the castle that they'd begun while looking for the Hogwarts kitchens, and their plans for future pranks. If nothing happened at the upcoming Quidditch game, James and Sirius wanted to plan for another large-scale joke. One that, unlike tampering with brooms and players, the school would find humorous and enjoyable.

"I knew this kid, a muggle from back home. He always talked about this thing called a film, like a whole bunch of photographs put together to tell a story. Anyway, this film was called Fantasia, and, in it, this like magical mouse animates brooms and makes them dance around," James suggested one afternoon, about two days before the match. He and Sirius sat at a small table in an alcove of the Gryffindor common room. Sirius was busy scratching out words on a piece of parchment, ideas for their next big prank. At James' word, Sirius stopped his writing and looked up at James.

"Sounds interesting but I think, for the time being, we should avoid anything that has to do with animating brooms, even if it is just to have them dance around. Too similar to what happened at the match. It might raise suspicions and only increase the heat on us," Sirius responded, keeping his voice as soft and quiet as possible. He didn't want anyone overhearing them talking about brooms, even if it was to deny their role in the whole debacle. Suspicious ears could turn even the most innocuous of conversations into something malicious.

James, taking in, and fully agreeing with, Sirius' words, turned to look out the window beside him. He was hoping maybe something he saw outside would act as a spark of inspiration and give him an idea for their next prank.

For the most part, the grounds outside were deserted. It was cold and dark out, a hamper to many students. At that point, they much more preferred the warmth of the castle. However, James was able to spot a few brave souls out enjoying the crisp February night. A small group of six were running around in the fresh snow, which had fallen the night before and throughout that day. They were playing in the snow and throwing snowballs at each other.

And with that, James had an idea.

* * *

The day of the Gryffindor versus Hufflepuff game was cold and crisp. Students donned multiple layers, thick cloaks, and warm scarves denoting their house they were cheering on. As well, some of the older students were selling small jars with bluebell flames to help people keep warm on the outdoor pitch.

The student body was excited, buzzing with predictions of what would happen. Quidditch was a major event at Hogwarts and never failed to excite the population. However, this time, there was also an edge to the excitement. This would be the first match for Gryffindor since the disastrous one against Slytherin. The buzz of predictions was slightly tempered by whispers about the possibilities of the Hufflepuff brooms being tampered with, or that something else similar could happen.

James and the others chose to ignore the less pleasant whisperings and mumblings and forged ahead to their spots. Slowly, the rest of the students trickled in, filling the stands. Then the players for both teams walked out onto the grass below.

"Good morning, Hogwarts! Today looks like an excellent, if chilly, day for Quidditch. Today, Hufflepuff, a fairly sturdy team with quite the chance at winning the cup, in my slightly biased opinion. They've won against Ravenclaw, and they can most certainly beat Gryffindor. Speaking of, the team going up against Hufflepuff is the winner of the cup last year. However, in their first match against Slytherin, which I'm sure you all remember, they were absolutely decimated. In order to have any chance for the cup this year, Gryffindor must win this game." Karlson's, the announcer's, voice boomed out over the crowd. Cheers and jeers erupted from the students depending on what was being said.

"Mr. Broadmoor has arrived, and the game begins! Now, no funny business out there, ladies and gents! We want a nice, fair game!" Karlson spoke with a joking tone, but James didn't appreciate it. The broom tampering had probably been someone's idea of a joke, similar to the Halloween prank, but it had backfired, royally. No one would try the same thing again.

"Gryffindor starts with possession of the Quaffle after chaser Frank Longbottom beats his Hufflepuff opponent Andrew Rudolph! Longbottom takes the Quaffle down the pitch, dodging bludgers sent by Finch and Beauregard! The Hufflepuff chaser, Meyers, is pressing him. Meyers is closing in on Longbottom. What will the Gryffindor chaser do? Oh, look, that's some pretty fancy flying from the fifth-year! But Meyers is still on Longbottom's tail. Longbottom must be feeling the pressure, he winds up and … passes to fellow chaser Cornish, who is able to get passed the Hufflepuff defence. Gryffindor quickly closes the gap to the keeper and Cornish takes a shot! And it's good! Ten points to Gryffindor!"

When he watched Quidditch with his father, James followed the action by watching the chasers and the Quaffle. After all, that was the main part of the game. However, his father watched differently. Quidditch games were always announced so if you missed where the Quaffle was, you could still follow the game. Because his father could hear the game, he didn't watch the Quaffle and the chasers, but searched out the seekers. This, Fleamont insisted, was the true mastery of Quidditch. Games were not often won by the chasers, but by the seeker and 150 point Snitch.

The first few minutes of the game passed in much the same way. Gryffindor had possession of the Quaffle most, about 20 of the first 30 minutes. And the score represented that fact. Gryffindor was leading Hufflepuff with a score of 60 to 10. Nothing untoward or malicious had occurred. None of the players on either team seemed to be having any problem with their brooms. In short, besides the dominance of one team over another, the first 30 minutes of the game was entirely routine.

But then, at 30 minutes, everything went wrong. Just like in the first match against Slytherin, several of the Hufflepuff players seemed to lose control of their brooms. All the players, on both teams, must have been on edge since walking onto the pitch that day, because as soon as things went wrong, they all froze. Well, all those who had control over their brooms froze.

The three Hufflepuff chasers were the victims this time, and whomever had jinxed their brooms had done so in such a way that it made the three chasers appear to be performing a choreographed dance. They dove and spun around in quite an eye catching and appealing fashion. Despite the visually appealing nature of it all, the assembled crowd still reacted with jeers and shouted complaints. Even Gryffindors joined in, upset that someone was messing with their team, their house, their reputation, and making them look bad.

Mr. Broadmoor was quickly able to freeze the offending brooms and get the Hufflepuff chasers, Rudolph, Meyers, and Smith onto the grass below. Professor Strinkley quickly made his way to the players and took their brooms. Rudolph, Meyers, and Smith were then presented with school brooms, which they gladly accepted.

During the whole affair, which had only lasted about five minutes, Karlson had been silent. He hadn't even spoken when the brooms first started acting up. He had been commenting on the game and then he'd gone silent. As James looked away from the action on the field and towards the small commentators booth that was located in front of the staff stands, he saw why Karlson had gone silent.

It would appear that, as soon as things had started to go wrong, Professor Greensleigh, the Deputy Headmaster and the Head of Hufflepuff house, had jumped in and silenced the announcer's megaphone thing. Karlson was obviously not happy about having his voice taken away and was in quite a row with Professor Greensleigh.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" Suddenly the voice of Professor Dumbledore echoed throughout the stands. The power and force behind the words got everyone's attention and they ceased their previous actions. "Unfortunately, someone has decided to disrupt the goings-on of this game. I'm not sure if they think it is a joke, or if their intent is malicious. I can assure you that, because of the repeated nature of these events, a full and thorough investigation will be conducted. The perpetrators will be found out and adequately dealt with. Tampering with players' brooms in any instance, but especially in an official match is absolutely reprehensible.

"After a brief discussion with all of the players, their desire to continue the game has made clear. As you saw, the affected players have been given replacement brooms. From here on out, I want a clean game with no more funny business. I would hate to have to call the rest of the matches because of the actions of a few misguided souls." Professor Dumbledore let the threat hang in the air, hoping it would be enough to stop the broom tampering. If this was a joke, the threat of the cessation of further Quidditch matches should be enough to make it clear that the joke was not funny. If the persons responsible were jinxing brooms in an attempt to fix the matches, and presumably assure the cup for a particular team, the potential of that goal being removed should also stop the jinxing.

"And, we're back!" Karlson said after Dumbledore returned to his seat. All the players remounted their brooms and returned to the air. "Hufflepuff has the quaffle! Smith takes it down the field! Oh! Hit by a bludger. Smith has released the quaffle and Gryffindor chaser Cornish retrieves it! Gryffindor is moving down the pitch. The quaffle is passed between Cornish and Longbottom! The two expertly evade Hufflepuff defences and shoot! Saved by McLaughlin! Score still stands at 60 to 10 for Gryffindor!"

Play resumed, back to the normality that it had been at the start. All players seemed to be in control of their brooms. As well, a new passion seemed to be ignited in the Hufflepuff players and their play became much more ferocious and focused. Where they'd previously been slow and not much competition, now they were lightning fast and fierce.

As well as the Hufflepuff players, James noticed that Gryffindor's seeker seemed to be more intense and focused. He flew around the pitch with more vigour, his head on a constant swivel. It looked as if Gryffindor wanted to end this game as soon as possible, to not drag it out and have the possibility of something else happening.

"Hufflepuff scores! We now stand at 90 to 40 after an hour of a play! Oh, what's this! Gryffindor seeker Wilde has shot to the left of the pitch! Has she spotted something? Hufflepuff's seeker is far behind her, trying to catch up! Will he make it in time? No! Wilde has caught the snitch! Gryffindor wins!" A cheer went up from the Gryffindor section and a smattering of the Ravenclaws joined in as well.

As the students either celebrated or hung their heads in disappointment, James scanned the crowd. He wanted to see if he could see anyone acting suspicious. Maybe if he found the actual culprits, any suspicion on him and Sirius would be shifted to the correct individuals. In the Slytherin section, James spotted Warrington, the Slytherin team's captain and the Defence Against the Dark Arts Professor Strinkley. They were talking to each other but trying to look like they weren't. Instantly, James' instincts were peaked. Though James was sure it hadn't been Warrington he had seen with Strinkley after Halloween, the sight before him was so eerily similar that James felt they had to be connected. Something was definitely up with them. And James was going to find out what, especially if it cleared his name.

* * *

James followed his friends out of the stadium. He hung back a little, trying to find a way to discretely inform them about what he saw. Not wanting to share his suspicions in front of others in case he was wrong, he was looking for a place that was secluded. However, in the crowd of students he wasn't finding a good spot.

"You okay?" Sirius asked, drawing James' attention from his quest. Sirius, Remus, and Peter were standing around James, looking concerned. His search had kept him preoccupied to the point where he was nearly completely unaware of his surroundings. Had he done something to worry his friends?

"Yeah, why?" James asked, drawing out the words to emphasize the question. He was a little worried that he'd actually done something. The looks his friends were giving him really had him on edge.

"You look a little suspicious, glancing into corners and whatnot. Plus, you're walking really slowly. What are you up to because this sort of behaviour isn't really a good idea right now. People already think we're guilty and this isn't helping." Sirius responded.

"I saw something during the Quidditch match, something that could help us clear our names and reputations. I wanted to talk to you guys about it but, somewhere more private than in a crowd of other students. Just trying to find a place," James responded.

"I might have a place," Remus spoke, looking a little nervous and embarrassed about it. He led the group out of the stands but, instead of turning towards the castle, he turned towards the Forbidden Forest. James, Sirius, and Peter followed him. A few students shot them looks, obviously believing their breakaway from the larger group meant they were up to something. James tried his best to ignore them for once, feeling more confident now that he had a viable suspect for the broom tampering.

As the boys walked closer and closer to the edge of the forest, a sense of thrill filled James. Despite their present circumstances, he quite enjoyed their little sojourn to the forest. It was off limits, out of bounds. Students weren't supposed to be going there. Yet here they were, walking right towards it.

"Alright," Sirius spoke, turning on James. They had reached a small clearing just on the outside of the forest, well away from any other students. "What did you see? What's this thing that will clear us of all suspicion?" Sirius looked like a kid in a candy store, excited to clear his name and return to the joy of pranking without the large sword of misplaced guilt hanging over his head.

"At the end of the game, I thought I might be able to spot something that I could use as a clue. I was looking for someone out of place or acting strangely. Maybe someone looking around obviously, or extraordinarily upset at Hufflepuff's loss. What I saw can definitely be used as a clue.

"Professor Strinkley wasn't in the staff stands, but in amongst the Slytherin students. This is what caught my eye because he shouldn't have been there. It was strange behaviour. Anyway, Strinkley was talking to Warrington, the Slytherin Quidditch captain. Both looked too pleased with themselves. I mean, a Hufflepuff loss is good for Slytherin's chances at the Cup, but they seemed too pleased. Like they were pleased about more than just the uptick in their chances. They were trying really hard to make it look like they weren't talking to each other –looking in the opposite direction and talking behind hands and sleeves. Plus, it was really similar to the last time I saw Strinkley suspiciously talking to another Slytherin.

"I think Strinkley and Slytherin have something to do with the broom tampering." James finally came out and said it. He held his breath for a few seconds, worried about his friends' reaction.

"And if Strinkley is in on the broom hexing, he can influence the investigation. He can hide or destroy any evidence that points to Slytherin and fabricate or plant evidence that points to us or the Gryffindor team!" Sirius' exclaimed, jumping in on James' story. James nodded in agreement at his friend's words. He was relieved that Sirius was so willing to believe him.

"But why would Slytherin hex their own brooms? They could have easily lost the game with their antics. It seems like too high a cost, even if they're trying to make Gryffindor look bad." Remus chimed in, looking a little sceptical at what his friends were saying.

"They were in control the whole time. If they'd gotten into a deficit that they didn't think they could get out of, they could have cast counter-jinxes and played on. Also, if they had lost, they could have made Gryffindor look obviously guilty and gotten the team disqualified. It's not that risky of an idea, if you think about it." James responded. Remus was silent, conceding that James' explanation in defence was plausible.

"So," Sirius spoke after the quartet had lapsed into silence for several seconds, "what's our next step? What do we do with this information?" He was looking directly at James, waiting for the messy haired boy to divulge his plan. Sirius obviously believed that James had a full-fledged plan about what to do with the information to clear their names.

"Well, this isn't really proof of something." James responded a little sheepishly, "it's just a gut feeling of mine and no one will believe us based solely on a gut feeling. What we need now that we've got a possible suspect is some real, solid proof. We need to see if there is anything that connects the Slytherin's to the jinxings."

"Looks like it's time for a stakeout," Sirius said, his voice low and conspiratorial.


	18. Chapter 17: A Dire Mission

**Chapter Seventeen**

**A Dire Mission**

* * *

_I do not seek. I find._

_~Pablo Picasso_

* * *

About twenty minutes after the four Gryffindor first years had walked into the small clearing on the outskirts of the Forbidden Forest, they returned. It had taken about five minutes for James to reveal what he saw, and then the remaining fifteen had been spent plotting and planning how they could observe the Slytherins, particularly the Slytherin Quidditch team, without being spotted. Once they felt confident in what they'd come up with, they headed back towards the castle.

Only a few stragglers still remained out in the grounds. Despite it being Saturday and a day when students didn't really have anywhere else to be, nearly the entire student body had hastily made their way back into the castle. It was far too cold, most reasoned, to be out in the grounds for much longer. James and the others quickly hurried across the snow-covered area, wanting to join the rest of the student body in the warmth of the castle.

As they got close to the door, the boys slowed their pace. Standing in the doorway of the Entrance Hall was a stern, disappointed looking Professor McGonagall. She caught James' eye and simply shook her head, obviously upset about whatever it was that had called her to the doorway at that moment. The four boys stopped talking, clearly sensing that something terrible was about to occur.

"Good afternoon, Mr. Potter, Mr. Black, Mr. Lupin, Mr. Pettigrew. I have something rather important that I need to discuss with you, Mr. Potter and Mr. Black." Peter and Remus moved like they were going to go with their friends, despite them not being included. Professor McGonagall levelled them with a look that stopped them in their tracks.

"In private," she added sternly, making it clear that she would not have Peter and Remus trying to tag along. "Something has recently come to my attention that has left me greatly upset. If you two would please come with me to my office so we can discuss this further." She continued to look sternly down at the other two boys, rooting them in place. Once she was certain that they wouldn't try to follow, Professor McGonagall turned on her heel and headed into the castle. James and Sirius reluctantly followed.

"I assure you, Professor," James piped up, sure that he knew what this new information was about, "we have absolutely nothing to do with the brooms. We would never taint a Quidditch game. We did hex the pumpkin pasties at Halloween, as I'm sure you've already deduced, but we did nothing at all to either Slytherin's or Hufflepuff's brooms!"

"Unfortunately, your word isn't worth quite as much anymore, Mr. Potter, even with your new-found willingness to be honest about previous acts. New evidence has been recently brought forward and it is fairly credible." Professor McGonagall made it clear that that was the end of the discussion on the matter. At least until they arrived at the seclusion and privacy of her office. James hung his head and hunched his shoulders, feeling defeated.

He'd been in trouble before and served detention several times already. He wasn't feeling defeated because of the possibility of facing another detention or some worse punishment. He was defeated because he'd had absolutely nothing to do with the crime he was currently accused of committing. He was fine getting in trouble for things he'd done, but getting in trouble for things he hadn't done threatened to shake his view of the world. He'd always believed that the universe was a just place where people got what they deserved; now he was starting to doubt that.

When they arrived at Professor McGonagall's office, the two boys took a seat in the armchairs before the large desk. McGonagall sat in the large chair on the other side. She intertwined her fingers and rested her chin on them. This forced her to look down her nose at the boys through the rim of her glasses. It was quite the intimidating look.

"Mr. Potter. Mr. Black. A few moments ago, Mr. Warrington came into my office quite distressed, with an extraordinary tale he felt compelled to tell. A few nights ago, he witnessed the two of you sneaking around the hallways and corridors. He was about to write you up for being out of bed after hours when you disappeared into the school broom closet. This immediately raised his suspicions and turned your behaviour from routine rule flouting to something more sinister. However, he couldn't investigate your actions further because a loud, much more pressing, commotion erupted from down the hall and he was forced to go deal with that.

"He quickly forgot about seeing you, what with his busy schedule. That is why he did not act on his suspicions sooner. However, today, when he saw the Hufflepuff brooms jinxed in the same fashion as his own team's broom had been, the memory came rushing back. He quickly called over Professor Strinkley and informed him and then found me and repeated it all.

"This is now twice that you two have been placed with the school's supply of brooms and the area where players store their personal brooms within days of a jinxing incident at a Quidditch game. So far, no one else has been shown to have such access, making you two our top suspects. Because of this, I will be confiscating your wands so their spell history can be examined. If it is found that your wands recently performed any of the jinxes or hexes that have been placed on the brooms, further action will be taken." Professor McGonagall then held out her hand expectantly.

"That's not true!" Sirius burst out, springing to his feet in indignant outrage, "we weren't anywhere the past few evenings except the Gryffindor common room and our dormitory! Frank Longbottom and Miles Coote came to ask us to lay low in the weeks leading up to the match for this very reason! They were worried about us sticking our necks out to pull pranks and… and other things, and said that, if something were to happen, it would only make us look more guilty. So, we did as they asked! There is no way Warrington saw us anywhere near the brooms!" Sirius finished his speech. He was huffing, his breaths coming in short bursts only, whether it was from the action of springing to his feet and speaking without taking breaths, or a sort of indignant-based breathing problem, James wasn't sure.

James remained seated, staring at Professor McGonagall. He wanted to see what she thought of Sirius' proclamation. It wasn't the most elegant and could possibly get them into trouble. Especially since James had noticed Sirius' pause around what else Frank and Coote had warned them off of but hoped McGonagall hadn't. The last thing they needed was more doubt and scrutiny put on them.

"If that is the case, Mr. Black," Professor McGonagall continued on calmly, ignoring the tone and excitement of Sirius' outburst, "then the investigation of your wands will reveal that. Now, I've informed your professors of the situation and they will be providing you with more theoretical magical practice until you have your wands returned." Once again, McGonagall held out her hand for the boys' wands. James, seeing that fighting at this moment would be pointless, retrieved his wand and handed it over. Sirius reluctantly followed suit.

With the task completed, James and Sirius stood and left. As soon as the door clicked shut behind them, Sirius rounded on James. The longhaired boy had a gleam in his eyes that lifted James' spirits. Whatever Sirius was thinking, James was sure he'd like it.

"That does it!" Sirius nearly shouted, rapidly pacing through the hallway. "We need to get undeniable proof of Slytherin's involvement. I'm positive, Strinkley will do something during the wand investigation that makes us look guilty. If we don't strike back this will all fall on us!" James smiled widely at his friend.

"I couldn't have said it better myself. I say we start tonight, get this done as soon as possible before the Slytherins can turn everything on us!" Sirius then plodded off down the hall to find wherever Remus and Peter had gotten to, desiring to fill them in on what had happened and what they were going to do about it.

* * *

"Ouch, Peter! That's my foot!" James harshly whispered. He attempted to glare at his friend, but the cramped space made the task difficult. He quickly gave up and went back to trying to observe the hallway. Peter, Remus, Sirius, and James were all wedged behind a suit of armour that was located just outside of the Slytherin dormitory. The area behind the armour was cramped and provided only minimal coverage, resulting in the four boys stepping on toes and getting accidental elbows in the gut.

It had been nearly a week since the Hufflepuff-Gryffindor game. James and Sirius' wands were still being investigated, which Remus insisted was a good thing. The professors were obviously doing a thorough investigation and, since neither James nor Sirius had been called to anyone's office, they hadn't found anything. James still made it clear that he missed his wand.

Being wandless, James and Sirius had focused all their free time on collecting whatever evidence they could on Slytherin. Peter had eagerly joined in, wanting to help his friends and prove his usefulness. However, doing reconnaissance and collecting evidence without access to magic was quite difficult. The boys had been forced to crowd themselves into alcoves, behind large tapestries, and behind statues and suits of armour.

It was far from the prefect system.

Because they hadn't been able to even attempt to hide or disguise themselves magically, James, Sirius, and Peter had been found out quite a few times. When it was a teacher, a friend or an acquaintance, or a neutral third party, the worst the discovery resulted in was mild embarrassment. However, when it was a member of Slytherin house, the boys were met with hexes and curses. Peter figured that the Slytherins' responsible for the broom tampering were attacking to hinder James' and Sirius' progress to clear their names. The other Slytherins were attacking in what they thought was retaliation for James and Sirius jinxing brooms.

"Be quiet! Someone's coming!" Remus whispered, nursing a rapidly darkening black eye from a misaimed curse from one of the Slytherins. Both James and Sirius had apologized profusely for dragging him into the whole thing and had since gone after the Slytherins with even more determination. Peter tried to inconspicuously crane his neck around Sirius' body to see out into the hallway.

Sure enough, walking down the hallway, their heads held high with self-importance were the two Slytherin beaters. They were moving quickly, coming from the Slytherin common room. They were obviously headed somewhere, and most likely late based on the speed with which they were making their way through the halls. This peaked James's attention, and the others obviously felt the same.

All four boys began squirming around behind the suit of armour, trying to get a better look at the pair in the hallway. However, their slight tussling over spots led to Peter stepping, and putting all of his weight down, on James' foot. The messy haired boy inhaled sharply. Despite his attempted to do so quietly, the two Slytherins heard the sound. They stopped in front of the suit of armour and looked at it quizzically.

"Did the armour just whistle?" the beater with short brown chopped hair, a big nose, and very crooked teeth asked, turning to his friend.

"Can't be! It ain't alive," the other beater, who had ear length blonde hair, beady black eyes, and a narrow face, responded.

"I heard it!" the first beater exclaimed. Wanting to prove to the other boy that he wasn't an idiot or crazy, the first beater stepped closer to the suit and began squinting at it. His eyes suddenly widened as he saw Peter's terrified face behind the suit.

"There's someone back there!" he shouted before pulling out his wand and blasting the suit of armour to pieces. Peter, along with James and Sirius came spilling out from their hiding spot. Remus, somehow, managed to stay on his feet.

"It's the first years what cursed our brooms!" the second beater angrily shouted, grabbing for his wand. James, Sirius, and Peter quickly scrambled to their feet and turned down the hallway. The four boys ran as fast as they could down the hallway away from the Slytherins. They knew, as soon as the Slytherins' had discovered them, that curses and jinxes would soon befall them.

As James and the others ran, curses went off over their heads, creating small holes in the castle walls and sending off small explosions in the air. James was beginning to question how either one of them had gotten onto the Quidditch team because their aim was terrible! Put together, the four first years were a fairly large target, and yet, not one single spell had made contact with any of the boys. They all went wide and hit the walls or were shot too high over their heads.

The four rounded a corner and, as Peter placed his hand on the wall to steady himself, fell through an intricate tapestry. The other three quickly noticed Peter's disappearance and halted their escape. They quickly doubled back and, only seconds later with a still stunned Peter lying on his back in a small, dark alcove, pulled aside the tapestry. Light instantly shot into the alcove, showing that it went behind Peter quite a ways.

A pleased smile crossed James' face as he, Remus, and Sirius stepped into the secret passageway. He let the tapestry fall behind him, closing the passageway to the outside hallway. Just as the tapestry stopped moving, the hurried footfalls of the Slytherins' passed by. They didn't stop or slow but barrelled on through the now empty hallway.

"Brilliant, Peter! Absolutely brilliant! Discovering a new secret passageway just in the nick of time! Genius move! Probably saved our behinds!" James enthused once the footfalls had faded away. Peter absolutely beamed at the praise levelled on him.

"I'll add this one to the others when we get back to the common room," Remus added. "Now I think with our cover blown, as they say, we should head back to the common room and get some schoolwork done."

Always the practical one, Remus once again suggested a cessation of the more dangerous activity and a turn toward a safer option. Peter, a little rattled by the close call, readily agreed with Remus' suggestion.

"Sounds like a good idea. I've still got about an inch on that paper McGonagall set a week ago. I really should get it done," James spoke in mild agreement, not too enthusiastic about giving up their adventure in Slytherin espionage but recognizing the validity of Remus' statement. Sirius concurred with a nod.

The four carefully picked their way through the hallway, curious about where it led, before eventually returning to their Gryffindor common room and their work that awaited them.

* * *

Remus and Peter sat at a fairly large table in the Gryffindor common room. It had been nearly a month since the disastrous Gryffindor-Hufflepuff game. James and Sirius still hadn't been returned their wands, and the pair had gone that day to complain to Professor McGonagall. Surely, after a month's worth of investigation their wands should have either cleared them or produced evidence of their guilt. Either way, the boys should have heard something about it and, at the very least they figured, had their wands returned.

They'd gone to plead their case, plead that going wandless was hampering their magical education. This left Peter and Remus alone in the Gryffindor common room. They'd been tasked, both through self-instruction and by James and Sirius, to continue to work on their plan to track and capture the Slytherins. The large table the two sat as was covered in various papers dedicated to this purpose.

In the few weeks since the Slytherin beaters had chased them, the boys had been slowly adapting their plan. Through the time they'd been searching for the kitchens at Halloween to now, where they were chased through hallways and luckily escaped into hidden passageways, the quartet had located quite a few secret ways throughout the castle. Remus had carefully recorded the location of each, and they now planned to use them to more secretly move through the castle and follow the Slytherins in the hopes of finding any and all evidence that would prove James' and Sirius' innocence.

"We could then duck in here and watch until they turn off or reach the end of the hallways. It gives us really good sight lines," Remus spoke thoughtfully, pointing at the very hidden passageway Peter had discovered by accident.

"You know," a voice called out from across the common room. Peter and Remus swivelled to look and saw James and Sirius making their way across the busy area. Neither looked happy or triumphant; Peter guessed they hadn't convinced McGonagall to give them back their wands.

"Know what?" Remus responded in kind once the pair had drawn near. James comfortably collapsed into an armchair and put his feet up on the one corner of the table not taken up by paperwork. Sirius took the remaining seat, hanging his head over the back in frustration.

"I've been thinking about this for quite a while. We've been trying to inconspicuously follow the Slytherin's to see where they go to meet up and talk about their broom tampering. However, we have yet to be successful because we always get caught. If we could come up with some sort of tracking spell, we could follow them from a distance and then come upon them at their final destination. You know any spell like that, Remus?" James turned to his friend awaiting Remus' response.

"Can't think of anything," the sandy haired boy said after a moment of thoughtful pause. "But there might be something about it in the library. I could go look and see what I find." Remus then stood from the table. James would want answers to his musings as soon as possible. Wanting to continue his helpfulness, Peter stood as well and scurried off after Remus. James and Sirius remained lounging around the table.


	19. Chapter 18: A Plans Afoot

_All you need is the plan, the road map, and the courage to press on to your destination._

_~Earl Nightingale_

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen**

**A Plans A Foot**

* * *

In the months before Christmas break, James would have said that Remus was a reluctant friend at best and an acquaintance at worst. He put in a lot of effort to try and befriend the skinny sandy haired boy, but it hadn't seemed like anything he did was making any progress. Then, after Christmas, and the issues with the broom tampering, it seemed like Remus was a different person. All of a sudden, he was extremely helpful and willing to aid the others in any way possible. And on one cold, evening in the middle of winter, Remus was the most helpful he had ever been.

"I've think I may have found something," Remus spoke, a little hesitantly. The four Gryffindor first year boys were sitting around the fire in the common room, books and various other school related detritus surrounding them. James, who had been only half focusing on his charms essay, instantly snapped his head up.

"What did you find?" James asked. He tried to reign in his excitement and enthusiasm, but a small amount bled over into the volume with which James asked the question. A few of the other Gryffindors scattered around the common room snapped their heads in the direction of the four. James gave them a sheepish, apologetic look before turning back to Remus and the others.

"There's this entry here, in Advanced Charms and Transfigurations, that mentions being able to find something that is lost. It's not exactly a real time tracking spell, but it is definitely a start." Remus turned the book he had previously had his nose buried in to show the others. James quickly glanced at it but found the explanation of the advanced spell confusing. Instead, he decided to take Remus' word on it.

"Do you think you can modify it?" Sirius asked, equally as hopeful as James, but at a more respectful level than James had been. Remus turned the book back around to him and consulted the confusing, and surprisingly small, script.

"I don't know if we can modify it, but I think it will help us narrow down the types of spells and components we need in a real time, follow a person, type spell." Remus then returned his nose to the pages of the book and was lost to the other boys for the next several hours.

James had set Remus on his hunt for a tracking spell less than a week prior and already Remus had made amazing progress. James was sure it would only be a matter of days before the spell was locked down and they had a way to follow the Slytherins without having to physically follow the Slytherins. And then, they could clear their own names, get their wands and their reputations back, and reveal who was behind the tampering all along.

With an increased determination, James dug into a book Remus had piled next to him. James didn't have as great a grasp on the theoretical as Remus, but James could at least look for different tracking spells.

* * *

James and Sirius walked through the hallways. They were absolutely deserted on account of it being nearly an hour after curfew. However, neither of the boys was worried about getting caught. That was one of the perks of serving detention with Professor Slughorn; he had so many stories of his trophy students that their detentions always ran late. Thus, they were essentially granted a free pass to roam the hallways late at night.

That particular detention had been the result of yet another disastrous attempt to follow the Slytherins. The pair had been trying to rig the suit of armour outside of the Slytherin common room to inconspicuously shoot tracking powder, a joke shop item they'd bought through a catalogue and the closest they'd gotten to a tracking spell, at the passing Slytherins. However, when Professor Slughorn had walked upon the pair, it looked as if they were vandalizing school property and they promptly received their twentieth detention of their first year at school.

Normally, they'd spend their free time post-Slughorn detention searching out new passageways, but today, neither was feeling up to any adventures. Both James and Sirius were feeling defeated. They hadn't gotten anywhere with the Slytherins, hadn't even located where they were meeting. To top it all off, they still hadn't gotten their wands back. It had been almost a month since they'd been taken, and the two boys were starting to wonder if they'd ever get them back.

As a result, James and Sirius were making their way directly back to the common rooms. Their heads were dejectedly hung low and they dragged their feet. All in all, they were a sad looking pair.

For once, they hadn't been up to anything, simply trying to get back to their doom room. That was why they were taken aback, and a little angry and upset, when Professor McGonagall called out to them. She'd been standing in the doorway, hidden from those in the hallway until they were right on her. McGonagall's voice wasn't uncharacteristically stern or disciplinarian, but it still put James on edge.

'What is it this time?' he thought to himself, slowly making his way closer to the Professor. He was very quickly reaching the end of his rope and if one more negative thing happened, one more thing went against him, he was certain he'd explode. His belief in a fair universe was rapidly eroding and it was getting quite devastating and demoralizing.

Finally, he and Sirius stood right in front of McGonagall. As they looked up at her, the despair that they were feeling was clearly expressed on their faces. This sight seemed to soften Professor McGonagall, as her normally stern expression was replaced with a compassionate, caring one. Her normally angular face changed as her expression did and, for a split second, James couldn't help but see his mother in Professor McGonagall's face. Maybe there was more to the head of Gryffindor than rules.

"I have some good news for you boys. Your wands have been thoroughly investigated and have been found to not contain a single trace of the spells that were placed on either the Hufflepuff or Gryffindor brooms. You have, thus, been cleared of all suspicion. I want to be the first to apologize to you for putting you through this. I would much rather believe the best in you. Maybe you could try and make it easier to think that you two are not responsible for malignant acts." Professor McGonagall spoke not as a professor scolding her pupils for their misbehaviour, but as a concerned parent, trying to offer her trying and difficult children some motherly advice to help them succeed in life.

"Here," Professor McGonagall continued, turning and reaching into the room behind her to retrieve something, "are your wands back. Your professors have been informed of this change and will stop providing you with theoretical work. If you find you have fallen behind in your practical magic abilities, all of your professors have agreed to provide you with evening tutoring to bring your magic back up to where it should be. Though, from what I've seen, I have little doubt that you will face any problems." At her last statement, Professor McGonagall seemed to beam a little with pride at her students' abilities.

James and Sirius stood still for several moments, shocked at what they had heard. They'd been expecting some sort of reaming out over some trouble they'd been suspected in. They hadn't thought that Professor McGonagall would be returning their wands and clearing their names. It was quite the shock to them.

"Well, hurry along now. You may have the free pass that a detention with Professor Slughorn provides, but you wouldn't want to take your recently cleared names and besmirch them with misbehaviour. Best you be off to bed as quickly as possible." She then shot the boys a look telling them they should leave her presence post haste to avoid actually getting themselves in trouble.

James and Sirius shook off their shock and quickly snatched back their wands. They then turned and hurried down the hallway. Their previously cloudy mood had quickly dissipated and both boys were now eager to get back to their normal hijinks.

* * *

James' and Sirius' eager and excited mood did not last long. The joy at having their wands returned to them was quickly replaced with frustration at not making progress in discovering where the Slytherins were meeting or what they were up to. While the boys had been cleared in the eyes of the Hogwarts staff, the student body still firmly believed that James and Sirius had played at least some roll in the broom tampering. Only by revealing the real perpetrators would James and Sirius truly clear their reputations and return their good, prankster king names.

All four boys, most likely based on the clearly exhibited magical prowess of James and Sirius, had believed that once the two had their wands returned to them, they would all finally be able to achieve something; they'd be able to find a clue or discover a spell that would solve their problems. They'd all believed that their lack of progress had been because they'd been handicapped, their two best practical magicians unable to perform any magic at all.

However, that was definitely not the case. Even with their wands, James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter were still at the exact same position they'd been before.

The dejection they were all feeling was clearly expressed one night in late March. The four were sitting at their table in the library, though that night, unlike the previous nights, the table was completely empty. Remus hadn't felt like setting out the work; he'd spent so much time staring at it all that the entire contents were seared into his brain. But more than that, he wanted to give up on their, for lack of a better word, quest.

"You've been cleared of suspicion by the professors. There is an extremely low chance that you'll get in trouble and face any repercussions from it. Finding out what role the Slytherins, and especially Warrington and Professor Strinkley, had in all of it is sort of pointless. Plus, I'm sure the professors won't stop looking into it all, and they will find out who really jinxed the brooms. We don't need to be doing anything!" Remus exclaimed. He was trying to keep his voice down, not wanting anyone else to overhear him, but his frustration was making it difficult. Despite all his research there wasn't a single tracking spell contained in a single book at Hogwarts, at least not one that didn't require seventh year magical abilities to even attempt.

"The professors don't believe we did it, Remus, but everyone else at this school does! We may not be facing any official repercussions, but we are facing angry Slytherins, Hufflepuffs, and Gryffindors! And those repercussions can be much, much worse!" James returned Remus' exclamation. For his part, James was not trying in the slightest to quiet his voice.

"They do know some nasty hexes," Peter piped up. He looked white as a sheet, obviously nervous about being caught in between James on one side and Remus on the other. He hadn't yet picked a side in the argument, but the prospect of having to do so was causing him quite a large amount of distress.

"That may be true Peter," Remus replied, "but we've spent far too long on this. We need to move on! Focus on our schoolwork. James and Sirius are already behind because they've missed a month of practicing. That should be our main concern. Exams will be on us before we know it!"

James didn't respond immediately. Instead, he turned to Sirius who had been sitting quietly on the sidelines during the disagreement. "What do you think Sirius? What should we do?" James asked his friend, hoping he knew what the longhaired boy would say. Surely Sirius would be on James' side.

Sirius took a moment before thoughtfully responding. "We have been spending a lot of time on something that has yet to provide us with even a small result. If we do something epic, similar to Halloween, then that could change what people think of us. We'd be known for our good pranks instead of the brooms. You had that epic prank planned before the Quidditch game." James felt crestfallen at his friend's response.

"That being said, though," Sirius continued, "I really don't want to leave the Slytherins alone. They should pay for what they've done. At the very least they should pay for causing James and me to have our wands taken away. I'm not sure what we should do next."

James was quiet for quite a while, contemplating all that his friends had been saying. They had put in a month and a half's work on the project and were yet to have any achievements at all. His friends' frustrations were perfectly understandable. But James still desperately wanted answers to it all and wanted to clear his name in the eyes of everyone who had ever doubted him.

"How about a compromise?" he suggested, "let's keep at it until the first of April, right after my birthday. That's only a little over a week away. If we haven't gotten anywhere by then, we can forget about the Slytherins and we can put on that prank for April Fool's Day. I have a feeling that we're really close to a breakthrough."

The others were quiet, but eventually agreed to James' compromise. James knew that his birthday, always an exceptionally good day for him, would bring something that would turn their luck around and finally see the success of his attempts to reveal Slytherin's treachery.

"Okay," Sirius responded, "We can work on both the prank and the Slytherins. Maybe I can ask Moira if she knows anything. She is one of the only Slytherins who will talk to us. It's possible she knows something. It's worth a shot."

"I can wait until April!" Peter squeaked, glad that he could finally pick a side. All eyes then turned to Remus.

"I guess we could wait until April. See if we can get anywhere. But I think we should give up on a tracking spell. I just can't find anything that we could conceivably pull off. There might be a book at a bookstore or something, but without access to anything I just don't know where else to look."

James smiled sympathetically at his friend. Remus really did look frustrated and stressed out about the tracking spell.

"Deal. We work until April, but not on the tracking spell!"


	20. Chapter 19: Happy Birthday, Jamie

**Chapter Nineteen**

**Happy Birthday, Jamie Darling**

* * *

_It takes a long time to grow young_

_~Pablo Picasso_

* * *

After having made the promise that they would only try and track down the Slytherins, figure out what they were up to, for a little over a week, James attacked the problem with a newfound vigor. He was sure that they were just on the verge, moments away from finding a Slytherin, following them into their secret meeting, and discovering all of the deep dark secrets held within. He pulled his friends, some more reluctantly than others, all over Hogwarts castle, trying to find the secret hiding place for the Slytherin meetings. They followed those they thought could be in on the whole thing but, nine times out of ten the Slytherins they were following went somewhere innocuous, like the library, the Great hall, or down to Quidditch practice.

In essence, they were getting absolutely nowhere. The only possible benefit that could be considered was that their efforts were insuring that James, Sirius, Peter, and Remus knew every nook, cranny, hidden passageway, and secret area of the castle. At some point, Remus had started copying down all the information, making a map of Hogwarts to help them keep all their newfound information straight and easily accessible.

But that was the only good thing that came from the days of searching and they were rapidly running out of them before they hit the deadline.

On the morning of March 27, James bolted awake and jumped out of bed. It was still early in the morning; he had nearly an hour before breakfast was even served. James always woke early on his birthday, excited about what the day would bring, and this birthday, his twelfth, was no different than any other. This would be the day when something would happen that would change his fortunes and turn the whole reconnaissance mission on its head.

He quietly, yet quickly, clambered out of bed. Stacked in a neat pile atop his large streamer trunk he kept at the foot of his bed were several gifts. James figured that the Hogwarts house elves must have collected them from the owl post as they'd been delivered and then brought them into his dorm room that night as he slept. There were gifts from his parents, from family friends, and even three gifts, one each, from his friends.

Eagerly, James began ripping into the colourful paper, desperate to find out what was contained within. He got several books, on topics from Quidditch to helpful jinxes, from family friends. His mother sent him some new clothes and a large package of homemade treats and goodies. His father sent him a new, top of the line broom servicing kit. Finally, his friends had ordered several small magical pranking objects from Zonko's. All in all, it was a good haul and James was extremely pleased with the lot.

He was in the middle of storing his new presents in his trunk when the three other inhabitants of the dorm room awoke. James opened a bag of his mother's gooey chocolate chip cookies and shared them with his friends.

"Happy birthday!" Sirius shouted, jumping around the room and waving his hands around like a crazy person. James latched his arm around his friend's shoulder, halting his harried progress around the room.

"Thanks, mate. How about we go get some breakfast. My mum mentioned something about a cake and it'll probably come in the post today." James then dragged Sirius out of the room and down the stairs. Remus and Peter followed quickly after them.

* * *

"Just give it one more try!" James pleaded with Sirius and Remus as the foursome made their way back to Gryffindor common room. It had been quite a day, and James was riding high on the wave of good fortune. He'd excelled in all his classes; even mastering the transfiguration spell he'd been struggling to get for weeks. He'd found a sickle someone had dropped on his way to Herbology that afternoon. Now, the stairs they'd been trying to climb moved halfway through their ascent, ending up in the direction of the Slytherin common room instead of Gryffindor.

"We haven't gotten anywhere, and it's been months! One more night isn't going to help us!" Sirius groaned, frustrated. James wasn't sure if the frustration was directed directly at him, at the situation, or at a combination of the two.

"It won't hurt us," James reasoned. He made his tone sound as sad and forlorn as possible and levelled his friends with the saddest expression he could muster. Sirius seemed to soften slightly at James' expression. It was now time to strike.

"Plus" James spoke, trying to keep the sense of accomplishment out of his voice, "today is my birthday and a good friend would do whatever their friend wanted when it was their birthday. I just have this feeling that something good will happen today. My birthdays are always good days where the best things happen to me. I've already mastered that transfiguration spell I've been struggling with. I think the same energy or whatever will transfer to this whole thing with trying to follow the Slytherins. I can just feel it." James finished his speech, hoping he'd been using his most convincing tone, and stared Sirius down. If James could convince Sirius to go along, then Peter would definitely join in. Even if Remus were opposed, the three of them would be enough to surveil and track.

"Fine!" Sirius finally relented, "one more time, but unless something changes this will be the last time. We really need to move on from this, though, James. We're basically running around in circles. Let's just get back at the Slytherins directly, proof or no proof."

James nodded, acknowledging Sirius words and concerns. However, only a second later, he turned down the hallway and whooped in victory. He leaped into the air and thrust his fist towards the ceiling as the sound escaped his mouth. Sirius chuckled at his friend's display of emotion, and quickly moved to catch up with James. Peter followed almost directly on Sirius' heel and, after a few seconds, and quite a bit of mumbling and groaning, Remus joined in.

When the quartet arrived at the corridor outside the Slytherin common room, they quickly found a spot to hide in their secret passageway covered with a tapestry. None of the Slytherins had discovered them there yet, so they continued returning. Other hiding spots of theirs had been found out and now, whenever suspicious Slytherins walked passed them, like the suit of armour the beaters had spotted them behind, the Slytherins would carefully and thoroughly search the area for any trace of the Gryffindors. The area behind the tapestry was still a safe place for their observations.

However, almost as soon as the tapestry stopped moving, initially being swayed as the boys walked in behind it, an arm reached from around the tapestry. The large stocky body of the Slytherin Quidditch Captain and Seeker Alectus Warrington then quickly followed the arm. He had a gleeful, almost psychotic-looking, smile on his face as he looked down on the petrified first years.

"Well, well, well. What do we have here? Four extremely annoying, terribly nosey first years who just can't seem to leave well enough alone. I heard you've been cleared of the broom tampering's. Why would you want to put yourselves out there to have the suspicions reignited? After all, the insinuation of the four of you hanging around the victimized Slytherins after being cleared, could be that you now think yourselves invincible and are coming back to re-victimize us." Warrington stared each of them down as he threatened them. James, his hackles raised at the threat, stared right back.

"We know it was you, Warrington. And we're going to find the evidence to prove it, so watch your backs!" James then turned on his heel and marched off down the passageway, upset that things had gone awry once again. His perfect birthday record had been shattered in the quickest of moments.

Suddenly, something smacked him in the back of his head. A warmth began to spread, and James quickly clued into what had happened. As James had left, Warrington, in a truly cowardly act, had sent some sort of jinx at James. The messy haired boy turned around and, in the same fluid motion, drew his wand. He was all ready to duel it out with Warrington, but what he saw at the entrance to the passageway stopped him for a moment.

Warrington was no longer alone. In the seconds that James had been walking away nearly every member of the Slytherin Quidditch team had joined their captain. James may have been able to hold his own against Warrington by himself, but he stood next to no chance against Warrington and a half a dozen or so Slytherins.

"Too much of a coward to fight us on your own?" Sirius taunted, though James could see a slight hesitation on his friend's face. Instead of responding, the gathered Slytherins simply began casting curses at the four first years. In the small area, most of the curses hit their targets. Luckily, they were relatively harmless, like jelly leg jinxes and bat bogey hexes. James, however, didn't want to sit around and wait until the older boys began casting more menacing curses.

"Run!" he shouted at his friends, drawing his wand, ready to defend their retreat. Sirius, not heeding his friend's plea, stood beside James with his wand drawn. The two first years began battling with the Slytherins, all the while slowly making their way back up the pathway towards the second exit. When the four of them reached the wider hallway, they took off and kept running until they were just outside the Gryffindor common room. James, concerned about what curses and dark magic the older Slytherins might know, had run flat out the entire time. Once he arrived outside the Gryffindor common room he doubled over in exhaustion.

"Uh, James," the apprehensive, and slightly winded, voice of Remus spoke from behind the bent over boy. After a few seconds, in which he attempted to catch his breath, James stood. He only saw Remus and Peter, but heard heavy breathing from behind him, indicating that they'd all made it out.

"What, Remus?" James asked, a little annoyed that Remus would take this moment for an I-told-you-so. The other boy wouldn't look him in the eye though, instead focusing on his hairline.

"Your hair is, uh, red. Kinda looks like your head is on fire," Remus spoke, pointing to the top of James' head. The messy haired boy quickly took off again, this time looking for a bathroom instead of an escape route. James found one a few meters down the hallway and entered it, hoping Remus had been playing some very poor tasting joke.

He walked up to the mirror and yelled out in frustration. His hair was, indeed, bright red. Warrington's curse, the one that had hit James in the back of the head while he had been walking away, had transfigured his hair red. And worst of all, James wouldn't learn human transfiguration for another several years. His hair would be stuck this ridiculous shade until either the curse wore off or someone took pity on him and transfigured his hair back to normal. With the current state of the public opinion in regard to him so low, James wasn't banking on any pity.

James let out a second frustrated sigh and, just as he did so, Sirius rushed into the bathroom alongside James. The dark haired boy was in even worse shape than James. One curse that had hit him had enlarged his ears and nose.

'Worst birthday ever,' James thought as he and his best friend took in the state of each other.

* * *

"No, James. We're done," Sirius spoke, sounding exhausted. He was leaning against his bedpost, his head hung low, so his long hair fell in front of his face. Despite his relatively calm stance, the repeated clenching and unclenching of his fists made his agitation clear. Remus and Peter were sitting on one bed, part of the disagreement but trying their best to remain out of it. James was anxiously pacing the floor of the dorm room.

"There's still a few days until April first. There's still time for us to find something or for something helpful to happen. We can't give up now!" At the end of his sentence, James turned to face Sirius, hoping to change his best friend's mind.

"James," Remus piped up. He hadn't wanted to be a part of the argument, but seeing his friend spin in circles, Remus felt he needed to inject some logic into the situation. "They jinxed your hair red! I still haven't figured out a way to turn it back, and we don't know how long the spell will last. Going back up against the Slytherin will only end badly."

"It's not that bad. In fact, I think I look quite dashing." James responded. He stopped his pacing to turn and look at himself in the mirror. He hoped that by cracking a joke he could lighten the mood some. This was the first real argument he and Sirius ever had, and he was quickly coming to dislike the whole thing. He wanted to end it. He wanted to stop arguing and focus on something else.

At James' comment, Sirius' shoulders slumped, and he exhaled deeply. It was evident that James' comment had disarmed him a little; he had ceased clenching his fists. Some of the anger and tension in the room dissipated. James breathed a sigh of relief.

"I'm just- I'm just tired of being the victim, James," Sirius spoke, "I don't want to be the target, I want to be the one targeting. I want to get back to pranking. We've already spent far too long on this. It's time for us to move on," Sirius looked at his friend imploringly. James wanted to agree with his friend, but he also wanted answers. It was a difficult choice to make especially when he felt so close to a resolution with the broom tampering, and so he lapsed into quiet, not contemplation really, more like agonizing choice-making.

Silence quickly filled the room. James stood rooted in place, in the middle of the dorm room, staring down at his feet. Sirius was still leaning against his bed. Peter and Remus remained seated on the bed. All three of them, concern and questioning clearly on their faces, stared at James.

Tap! Tap! Tap!

The sound echoed throughout the nearly silent room. All four boys' heads snapped towards one of the large windows that ringed the room. Sitting on the sill, tapping gently on the window, was regal looking owl. Clenched in its claws was a neatly wrapped package. James instantly recognized the owl and quickly moved to open the glass. The owl then hopped inside and deposited the package on James' bed.

"Another present?" Peter asked, breaking the silence. The group had gone from staring at James to staring at the owl without saying a single word. James moved towards his bed, quickly gaining excitement.

"Yeah. From my dad. I don't know why he waited and didn't send it with the others. Also, he already got me a gift. Maybe he forgot he sent me something already…" James' musings died off as he began to rip into the package. A piece of parchment fell to the floor as James reached into the package and pulled out an old cloak.

"No way!" James exclaimed, his voice barely more than a whisper. He held the cloak up, examining it as it unfolded. Remus grabbed the parchment and began to read it.

_Dearest James, _

_I know I already got you a gift, but I don't really consider this one a gift. It had been passed from father to son for generations. So, this isn't so much me giving you a birthday gift as me presenting you with something that is already yours. _

_Use it wisely and try to stay out of trouble._

_Love you,_

_Dad_

Remus looked up from the letter.

"Your family passes along a cloak?" he asked, obviously believing it to be some weird pureblood ritual and glad that his family didn't partake in such strange things. James just looked up at his friends, a smug expression on his face. He then wrapped the cloak around his shoulders.

"It's so much more than simply just a cloak. This is the answer to all of our problems," the floating head of James spoke.


	21. Chapter 20: Breaking Down the Door

**Chapter Twenty**

**Breaking Down the Door**

* * *

_He, who moves not forward, goes backward_

_~Goethe_

* * *

Excited chatter instantly broke out between the other first year Gryffindors. Sirius was as excited as James, obviously thinking of all the trouble they could get up to when they were invisible. Remus was enthralled with the magical aspects of it, the rarity of such an item. Peter was just swept up in the excitement of the other three.

"We've got to try it out!" Sirius loudly exclaimed. James and Peter nodded excitedly, but Remus seemed a little apprehensive.

"Now? It's after curfew and you two are already on thin ice. What if we get caught?" the skinny boy asked, his face paling even more as he thought about what kinds of trouble they would get into. James waved off Remus' concerns.

"We won't get caught Remus. This is an invisibility cloak. If we wear it, we will be invisible. No one will be able to see us and therefore, no one will be able to catch us," James explained. He moved to stand next to Sirius and wrapped the cloak around the other boy as well, showing that it worked on multiple people at the same time.

"But invisibility cloaks are unstable magic. You said it's been in your family for generations. Surely the spell has started to fail. We could easily be under that cloak when it's invisibility wears off and then we'd most certainly be caught, and most certainly treated absolutely terribly. Being caught under a cloak trying to be invisible is extremely suspicious behaviour." Remus crossed his arms as if to say he wasn't going anywhere under that coat.

"This isn't just any invisibility cloak, Remus. It's been in my family for hundreds of years, has been passed from father to son for generations and it as just as invisible now as it was when it first came into the Potter family. Trust me. The spell will not fail. I give you my word," James crept out from under the cloak and walked over to where Remus was standing. He held out his hand in an attempt to seal his promise. Remus still looked extremely skeptical but, after several seconds, he gave in and shook James' hand.

Both James and Sirius whooped in excitement and began to dance around the room.

* * *

"Slower. The bottom is being kicked up. There's not a lot of good being invisible if our feet are showing!" Remus scolded. The four Gryffindor males had been hurrying along the deserted hallways, hidden under James' new invisibility cloak. They were out, well past curfew, testing exactly how invisible the cloak was. If they could get by without a prefect of professor noticing them, they would be able to follow the Slytherins without a problem. They didn't have a particular goal in mind, a particular destination; they were just aimlessly wandering around to see how well the invisibility cloak worked.

"Okay, slow down a little," James spoke. Sirius, following nearly directly on his friend's heels, followed the orders and slowed down to a crawling pace. Images of all the mischief the four boys would get up to once they'd successfully completed their current mission ran through James' mind. However, if they were caught on this first outing, their highly prohibited invisibility cloak likely to be confiscated, none of what he envisioned would be possible.

Suddenly, the echoing sound of approaching footsteps could be heard throughout the deserted hallway. The four boys froze in place. This, whoever was walking towards them, would be their first test of the cloak. Nerves overtook them and all four held their breaths in anticipation. Then, Mr. Filch, the school's caretaker, appeared from around the corner. Quick on his heel was his ever-present cat.

Not wanting to be found out by the sounds of their movements, the four stood absolutely still and simply waited for Mr. Filch to approach them. As she got closer, Filch's cat Mrs. Norris seemed to sense them. Her lamplight eyes locked onto their position and didn't waiver. She began to meow, getting louder the closer she got, obviously trying to alert her master to their presence. However, for his part, Filch paid them no notice. Always a stickler for rule following, James was certain that if Mr. Filch could see them, he would be relishing in handing out punishments. The fact that he wasn't even acknowledging them, boded very well. They were invisible!

James felt a slight nudge on his right and turned to see Sirius, a plotting look on his face. He made sure that he had James' attention, then turned back to Filch. The man had stopped nearly in front of the quartet and was fighting with Mrs. Norris to get her to keep moving. However, sensing the boys, the cat was refusing to budge. Sirius took the opportunity and, staring directly at Filch, began pulling faces. The other man was completely oblivious.

Stifling the laughter that threatened to explode from within, James joined his friend. Quickly, Peter joined in as well. All three of them made faces underneath the invisibility cloak and Filch was none the wiser. It was all absolutely fantastic!

* * *

Finally, it was the day. Friday. A shorter day for the first years because of their flying lessons. However, the lessons were not a weekly occurrence, leaving the first years with several Friday afternoons a month off. Sirius and James had picked this day, and forced themselves to wait several agonizing days, because it would give them the largest amount of time. Despite their many surveillance attempts, the boys did not know the Slytherin's schedule, didn't know when the few they were really interested in came and went. The more time James and Sirius had to wait and watch, the greater their chances at actually seeing something.

Also, Friday meant they had all weekend to complete any work so they wouldn't get too much further behind if they spent all evening watching the Slytherins. Remus made sure they were very aware of this benefit of waiting until Friday.

As soon as they were dismissed from their last class, the quartet legged it towards the Slytherin common room. A few feet from their target, they slipped into an empty classroom and James pulled out the cloak from his bag. He gave everyone a meaningful look, ensuring they knew the importance of what they were about to do.

"Everyone ready? Once we start, there's no backing out. We could be facing some pretty powerful, potentially very dark, hexes and jinxes," James spoke, stroking his hair at the memory of the last time they'd gone up against Warrington and his cronies.

"Yes, but we could also finally get some answers!" Sirius exclaimed before grabbing the cloak and throwing it over himself. The others followed suit and disappeared beneath the fabric. The four then carefully picked their way out into the hallway, not wanting to do anything that could get them discovered. They sat down, just to the side of the armour they'd been forced to hide behind so many times before and waited for a member of the Slytherin Quidditch team to leave the common room.

The arrival of James' invisibility cloak seemed to be a sort of lightning rod for good luck. Prior to its arrival, the boys had hit wall after wall and gotten absolutely nowhere. Now it seemed like nothing could go wrong. They had basically just sat down and adjusted the invisibility cloak to ensure it covered everything, when none other than Warrington casually walked out of the Slytherin common room. The Slytherin Quidditch captain was most definitely involved in the broom tampering. No one would have gone to the lengths that Warrington had gone to if he weren't involved in the plot in some way.

James had thought that they would at least have to wait until all classes were out for the day, figuring that Warrington and any other important people would still be in class. However, Warrington either had a free period or had simply decided not to attend his final class for the day. Whatever the reason, Warrington was not in class, but headed somewhere, quickly.

As carefully as the thrill and excitement that they may actually be getting somewhere allowed them, the four boys stood. Once again, they were lucky in that, despite the very joyful emotions they were experiencing, as they stood, they neither made significant sounds to draw attention nor had the invisibility cloak shift or reveal a single part of the four. Warrington was none the wiser of their presence only feet from him.

Warrington walked leisurely, yet quickly, through the hallways. He would often look over his shoulder, seeing if he was being followed, and made several sharp turns and took meandering routes. All of it only increased the excitement Sirius felt. The way Warrington was acting was definitely a sign that they were onto something.

Finally, Warrington disappeared into a classroom. There were several other students within, all of them Slytherin. Before Warrington arrived, they were all just milling around, waiting for something. Then, as soon as Warrington entered, a much more business-like manner overcame the room. Something was definitely about to happen.

The four had been giving Warrington a fairly wide berth to help further conceal their presence. However, sure that they had reached their final destination, the boys raced to close the gap and get into the classroom. They were mere steps from the door, from finding out what was about to happen, when the door of the classroom closed shut. James hesitantly tried to open the door, but found it locked. The few unlocking charms that the group knew likewise proved ineffective.

They'd been so close.

"Now what?" Sirius asked. Unlike the previous failures and setbacks, this one didn't feel quite as upsetting or create the same sense of dejection. In fact, he still felt like there was progress to be made and they were on the right track.

"Something is definitely happening in there!" James exclaimed, "We have to get in! If we find a professor, explain to them what's been going on, maybe we can convince them to help us. A professor could open the door, witness it all, and clear our names in one fell swoop!"

"Excellent!" Sirius agreed, before throwing the cloak off of himself and racing down the hall in search of a professor. Any professor!

* * *

Sirius had taken off much quicker than James and the others. He was gone down half of the hallway before James, Remus, and Peter even registered it. As a result, they were forced to chase after and catch up with the young Black. They found him standing behind a corner looking down the other hallway, his head hung a little low. James was momentarily curious and crept towards his friend. He looked around the corner and saw Professor McGonagall slowly walking down the hallway.

"Excellent!" he spoke to Sirius before calling out, "Professor McGonagall! I'm so glad I found you! There's a rather urgent matter I need your assistance with!" James quickly jogged around the corner and down the hall towards Professor McGonagall. She paused her own progress, waiting for James, and a tired expression briefly flitted across her face.

"Yes, Mr. Potter. How can I help you?" Peter, Remus, and, slowly, Sirius, caught up to James and Professor McGonagall. Everyone looked expectantly at James.

"Well, Professor. We think we know who is actually responsible for jinxing the brooms. And they're meeting in secret right now! Probably discussing their next move! They've locked the door, so we can't know for sure, but if you came and unlocked the door, we could show you!"

"And what proof, exactly, do you have to support these accusations?" she asked, looking down at the boys.

"It's in the locked classroom, Professor," Sirius chimed in. Peter and Remus also added their own pieces, possibly hoping they could reach critical mass and convince McGonagall to go with them.

"If you just come with us, we could prove it all to you!"

"Hurry, they may not be there for much longer!"

All the boys continued pleading, often talking over each other. Desperate. They were so close they could taste it and yet it was threatening to slip right through their fingers. They weren't about to give up now.

"Alright! Enough! Enough boys! Take me to this classroom and we'll see if what you are saying is true," Professor McGonagall finally spoke, cutting off the boys. Her tone sounded exhausted, like she'd only agreed to get them out of her hair. However, that fact either escaped James' notice or was overshadowed by the fact that she'd actually said yes. James eagerly marched back through the halls, causing Sirius and the others to jog slightly to keep pace.

When they finally reached the door behind which James was positive Warrington and the others were plotting, the boys stepped aside to allow McGonagall to open the door. She stepped up to the solid oak and pulled out her wand; after observing it for several seconds, she expertly waved her wand around. A few seconds passed and then the door opened of its own accord.

"So, everyone needs to make sure they know the playbook, have it essentially memorized by next week's practice. We need to make sure-" Warrington stopped his speech as the door opened. Everyone in the room turned to look.

"Professor McGonagall, can I help you?" Warrington asked, his tone innocent.

"Just checking in on the meeting. It is a little strange to have a door locked during a Quidditch meeting and these boys were concerned." McGonagall stated. As she spoke, she shot Sirius, James, Peter, and Remus a sceptical look. It would appear that they'd interrupted a Quidditch meeting and not some secret illicit broom-tampering meeting.

"Yes, well, with the lengths some people have been going to in order to win Quidditch matches and the cup, we thought we should take precautions. Ensure that no one could learn our strategy and tactics." As he spoke, Warrington seemed to shoot Sirius and James a meaningful look, as if he weren't only talking about Quidditch.

"That's very reasonable. As you were." McGonagall then stepped out of the room, closing the door behind her. She turned to four boys in the hallway, levelled them with a truly withering gaze, and walked off. James felt his heart drop. They'd been so close and now, they were back, not where they started, but even further behind. McGonagall would not easily trust them again and Warrington definitely knew they were looking into him.

Now, they were back at square -50.


	22. Chapter 21: Never Give Up

**Chapter Twenty-One**

**Never Give Up**

* * *

_Energy and persistence conquer all things_

_~Benjamin Franklin_

* * *

"Ow, Peter! You just stepped on my finger!" a whisper broke the silence.

"Sorry, Sirius. Just can't seem to get comfortable," Peter responded sheepishly. Sirius seemed to accept his apology because the longhaired boy turned back to looking down the hallway without another word. Peter squirmed around a little more, paying much more attention to where his body parts were in relation to Sirius'. However, nothing seemed to be helping and Peter gave up with a frustrated sigh.

The boys had been sitting on a stone cold floor for going on four hours and James wasn't surprised that his friends were finding it more than a little uncomfortable. All of them had been squirming and repositioning, trying not to give themselves away but also trying to reawaken body parts that had long since lost sensation.

Nothing of note had happened in those four hours, which wasn't helping matters. James could feel the frustration mounting with each passing second. Remus had refused to come on the stake out, claiming that he had schoolwork that he needed to finish and had instead headed off to the library. That left James to sit with Sirius and Peter on the cold floor underneath the invisibility cloak.

"Well, I think we could sit here for another four hours and we wouldn't get any further along with the Slytherins. I'd say they aren't meeting here tonight. There are certainly better ways I can be spending my time," Sirius suddenly spoke, standing and removing the invisibility cloak.

Since the close call with the Slytherins in the very classroom that Sirius, Peter, and James had been camped out in front of, the four Gryffindors had decided to keep an even closer watch on the goings on involved with that room. They would take turns sitting in front of the offending classroom and wait for the Slytherins to arrive. Then the plan was to find another professor, one more amiable than Professor McGonagall, to help open the classroom and they would have their proof. They were sure that any professor would need to actually hear the plotting before any real discipline was laid down on the Slytherins, but they were hoping their word would be enough to at least get a professor to open a locked door.

However, about a week and a half had passed and, despite near-constant surveillance of the classroom, not a single Slytherin had so much as walked passed the room. James and Sirius had also taken it upon themselves to occasionally tail people they believed were key conspirators, just in case the Slytherin's had decided to meet somewhere else after being found out. That tactic also lead them nowhere.

The others agreed to call it an evening and made their way back to the Gryffindor common room. The three of them walked into the Gryffindor common room only seconds before curfew, which earned the pair a suspicious look from prefect Frank. They found Remus sitting in front of the fireplace, a large stack of papers they'd spread out in front of him. As soon as Remus spotted the other three, he lifted one of the sheets of paper and motioned for his friends to come closer. James recognized that the paper held the quartets back up plan. If they couldn't clear their names, then they would try to retool their reputation with a grand prank, enjoyed by everyone as opposed to reviled by them.

"So, anything?" Remus asked hopefully, despite his friends' tired expressions. Instead of answering the question, the three boys collapsed onto various comfortable seats. It was clear that they had been less than successful with their evening of sitting in front of the classroom.

"I was wondering," Remus added, returning to scrutinizing the parchment in his hand, "maybe the Slytherins are feeling a little heat. Maybe we got a little too close, nearly discovered something with Professor McGonagall. I know if it were me, I'd lay low for a little, try and get us to grow tired, and then resume meeting. Perhaps we should forestall our efforts for the time being, lull the Slytherins into a false sense of security. It would probably increase our chances of getting information."

James was quiet for several moments. So was Sirius, but a closer look by James revealed that the longhaired boy had, in fact, fallen asleep.

"Okay, Remus. Let's put a pause on the surveillance until after Easter Break. Then once we're back, we redouble our efforts and don't stop until we get somewhere! That should be enough time for the Slytherins to think we've given up. Plus, we can spend that time really focusing on our year-end prank. One way or another we're finishing first year with a bang!"

* * *

Finally, Easter Break arrived, and a collective call of joy erupted from the student body. The four Gryffindors were a little less enthusiastic. They hadn't cleared their names; people knew their wands had been returned but that seemed to have a minimal effect, if any at all. They needed to uncover the Slytherin secret. James was determined now. So, when they returned from break, all four were ready to put an end to their issue, once and for all. Their first night back, the boys sat up in bed, discussing their plan for finally implicating the Slytherins in the broom tampering scandal.

"So, Sirius and I will take the first watch, so to speak. We'll go out tomorrow after class and if they are meeting, we'll try and get a professor to break it up. Hopefully we'll be able to get somewhere this time," James spoke, sounding like a general laying out his battle strategy.

"And I think Remus and Peter should spend that time continuing on with the grand exit preparations. We're almost done, but we don't want to get sidetracked or anything," Sirius added. Everyone voiced their agreement and then turned in for the night. A buzz, not dissimilar to the one that was felt upon the arrival of invisibility cloak, permeated the room.

'Something,' James thought, as he dozed off, 'something big was going to happen tomorrow.' He could just feel it.

* * *

James had been excited, thought that the break would be a refresher, that they would come back and get things done. However, as he ambled into the Gryffindor common room at the end of a long day, Sirius on his heel, he wasn't so sure.

"Well boys," James spoke, as he and Sirius slumped down in chairs around the table that Remus and Peter were at, "things are not going to be as easy as we thought."

"Obviously," Sirius interjected, "the lack of joyous, obnoxious dancing means we didn't achieve anything new. Trust me, when we are successful there will be a lot of dancing."

"Yes, well, anyway. It turns out our plan to lay low worked because the Slytherins were, in fact, meeting up today. In that classroom! Sirius and I were only there for a few minutes before people started showing up! We quickly went to get a professor, anyone but McGonagall, to see if they could unlock the door and that we'd hopefully find more than a Quidditch meeting."

"And we flat out failed!" Sirius jumped in, slight outrage in his voice. "Apparently, Professor McGonagall has been sharing our exploits with all of the staff! They all want proof before they help, but we can't seem to get proof without their help! How will they know what we're saying is true?!" As Sirius spoke, he got more and more hysterical.

"Yeah, we found three different professors and all of them said that they wouldn't be led on a wild goose chase without hard proof, like statements from the Slytherin team incriminating them or us witnessing them doing something against the rules. Though our word may not be worth much anymore. On the third professor, Professor Flitwick, we even tried to imply that we had heard some things in the meeting, but he wasn't willing to believe us! It's like we'll need to get it in writing or have a professor overhear their conversation!" James added, a little calmer than Sirius.

"Well, we'll just need to find a way to get into the classroom," Remus spoke, shuffling papers around the table as if he was looking for something. "McGonagall obviously knew a more advanced unlocking spell than we have currently learned; there must be a record of it somewhere…" Remus trailed off as he became more engrossed in his search. James wasn't sure if Remus had something in his papers, or if he had recorded a helpful book or something.

Instead of waiting for Remus to continue, James' took the ideas that Remus had started to discuss and ran with them. "We could also try and find some sort of spell that would keep a door open. These last few times, we've almost made it into the classroom when the Slytherins enter, but we are just a little too slow. If we could hold the door open for like 30 more seconds, we would definitely be able to get in."

"That sounds like a lot of work," Sirius mumbled from his position in a side chair, his head hanging off the arm of it.

"Aren't our reputations worth it?" James asked. "Shouldn't we put in as much effort as it requires to return our good-natured prankster king reputation?" James spoke with such a passion that the other boys were silent for a few moments; Remus had even momentarily stopped his searching. After a few seconds, Peter began to nod enthusiastically, wholeheartedly agreeing with James' words. Remus didn't protest and returned to his searching which, for Remus was akin to agreement. Sirius continued to look less than pleased by the prospect.

"We could also just work on our prank. This feels like we are repeatedly smacking our head against a wall for the fun of it. We aren't getting anywhere and it's getting more than frustrating! If we do something fun and playful, it will feel like progress."

"Ah ha!" Remus exclaimed. He obviously hadn't been listening to the exchange between Sirius and James and Peter as he had spoken only seconds after Sirius had finished his thought. All eyes turned to the sandy haired boy. "I knew I'd written it somewhere!" was all he said before he hurried off, out of the common room. James, Sirius, and Peter sat looking at each other for a few seconds before raising to follow Remus.


	23. Chapter 22: Chip, Chip, Chip

**Chapter Twenty-Two**

**Chip, Chip, Chip**

* * *

_There is nothing like looking, if you want to find something. You certainly usually find something, of you look, but it is not always quite the something you were after_

_~J.R.R. Tolkien_

* * *

James, Sirius, and Peter hurried after Remus Lupin. James was quite surprised how fast the boy could move when he was determined. By the direction of travel, James was pretty sure that Remus was headed for the library, though what he sought there was a little unclear. The boys had just been discussing researching spells, but surely Remus didn't think they would be able to find anything at that precise moment. Their curfew would be coming up in less than ten or fifteen minutes. Even with Remus' crazy fast research abilities, James wasn't sure that would be enough time to find anything of use.

He jogged quicker, trying to catch up with Remus to discuss it all with him but James, after an evening of sitting under the invisibility cloak on a cold floor was a little stiff and unable to move very well. His movement was closer to a hobble than anything remotely athletic. Giving up, James decided they would just have to talk about whatever had sent Remus nearly running to the library so close to their curfew.

"What do you think's gotten into him?" Sirius asked once James slowed to join the other two once again. James shrugged his shoulders, having been asking himself similar questions only seconds before. Peter, who was huffing quite a bit as he tried to keep up with his friends, shuffled his eyes between the two before responding.

"We were in the library earlier and he was writing notes on spells he thought would be helpful. Maybe what we were talking about reminded him of something. He did look through his notes and exclaim 'ah ha' before he shot off." Peter's words came out in between huffs and deep breaths. Feeling a little bad for his friend's obvious distress, James slowed their pace even more. They would meet up with Remus soon enough; there was no point in causing Peter to drop from exhaustion. Sirius, however, obviously eager to discover the source of Remus' strange behaviour continued on down the hallway at the same pace as before, leaving James and Peter behind.

The two walked in companionable silence for a few seconds before a nagging thought took hold of James. It was something he'd been worried about for a few weeks but had kept pushing aside. However, now that he was alone with Peter for the first time in a long while, James couldn't help but think about it.

"Hey Pete," James spoke into the silence. Peter, whose face was still a little red from the strain of their pace, turned to look eagerly at his friend. "Do you think all of this," James waved his hands around his head in an attempt to indicate what he meant by 'all of this', "is worth it? Do you think we should be pushing this hard to try and clear our names? Sirius obviously thinks it's' silly and I think Remus just likes the research it involves and the solving of a mystery aspect of it, but what do you think? Should we keep at it or should we drop trying to expose the Slytherins and move on with our prank?"

James looked earnestly down at Peter, hoping that the other boy would be honest with him. James wasn't so sure about Peter's honesty; at times it felt like the younger boy was saying exactly what James wanted to hear not necessarily what Peter thought. He wanted Peter to know that his friendship didn't ride on Peter always agreeing with what James said. Sirius and Remus certainly had their disagreements with him, but it seemed that Peter only wanted to please James.

Peter was quiet for several seconds, which James took as a good sign.

"I think we should keep doing it," he finally spoke, his voice barely above a whisper. "The Slytherin's ruined our good names and they can't just get away with it. And I think we are making some progress, despite what Sirius believes. We will eventually break into the Slytherins'' secret meeting; I just know it." As Peter spoke, his voice increased in volume, almost as if he was becoming more confident. When James didn't immediately question the other boy, it was like he felt more assured in what he was saying, like James was approving.

For his part, James smiled at his friend. He truly believed that Peter had been honest with him in that moment and did actually agree with him. Peter wasn't just giving him platitudes to appease him.

"Good. Now let's go see what progress Remus has made!" James exclaimed, taking off down the hallway once more.

* * *

When James walked into the library, he didn't see Remus at first. Sirius was standing, a little awkwardly, in the middle of the open area with the tables. James walked up to his friend, a questioning look on his face.

"Where is Remus?" he asked. "Did the librarian eat him?" he chuckled slightly at his joke. Sirius just shrugged.

"I got here like twenty seconds before you did. I think he's somewhere in there but I'm too afraid to cross the threshold. The last time I was here this late, working on schoolwork mind you, Herbert nearly took my head off. It's a self-preservation thing." Sirius spoke, a shiver running up and down his spine at the memory of the normally meek and mild mannered librarian losing his mind at the fact that Sirius dared to be in the library ten minutes before the curfew. James shuddered at the memory too.

"Guys!" the distant, slightly disemboweled voice of Remus sounded from somewhere within the stacks of the library. James shot Sirius a look and the other boy responded by motioning him forward. It was clear that Sirius was still traumatized from his previous library experience and would not on this occasion be entering the library. James turned to Peter who looked a little terrified, but the other boy nodded that he would join James.

Together, the two boys set off into the stacks. James had heard the muggle children who lived around his house playing a game in which one of them hid and the others had to find him by yelling out something, and he thought it might be helpful in that moment. Except, he didn't know the words that you were supposed to yell, and he also didn't know if Remus would know what he meant by it when he yelled them. Luckily, James didn't have to worry about that for so long because they quickly found Remus two rows in, a stack of books surrounding him.

"I think I've found a book that will help us with our unlocking charm problem," Remus spoke, holding up said book. It looked plain, covered in a deep blue. James' couldn't see the title but decided to take Remus' word for it. If anyone knew books, it was Remus Lupin.

"Excellent!" James exclaimed. "This is fantastic Remus! How'd you find it?"

"I'd written it down in my notes, thinking it might be helpful if our current line of advancement to get a professor to catch the Slytherins didn't work. I didn't mention it before because you seemed to intent on convincing someone to catch them. But now, I think it will be really helpful. It has all different kinds of unlocking, locking, and revealing charms." Remus stood from the floor where he'd been sitting amongst the books. As he did, James felt a presence behind him, one that hadn't been there before. Thinking it might be Sirius, James turned around excitedly, ready to exclaim his excitement.

Instead, he found a rather perturbed looking Fitzhew Herbert, the school librarian. He was glaring at Remus and the mess the other boy had made with the books. Then, the normally quiet and unassuming man looked down at a pocket watch he kept within his robes. Before Herbert could begin yelling at the first years, James jumped into action.

"Alright chaps. Let's be off. Might have to leg it to make it back before curfew!" James turned to leave but was almost immediately halted by a bony hand grabbing tightly onto his arm.

"Not so fast, Mr. Potter," the whisper-quiet voice of Mr. Herbert spoke. "You've got a mess to deal with." The librarian then nodded his head in the direction of the pile of books, indicating that he wanted James, Remus, and Peter to clean them up. James groaned internally. Doing that would surely take them more than the few minutes they had before they were no longer allowed in the hallways and Herbert was most definitely not likely to give them an excusatory note.

"Right. Sorry Mr. Herbert," Remus spoke before waving his wand around and muttering a cleaning spell. The books quickly sprung up from their pile and began to reinsert themselves in the bookshelves nearby. It took only a few seconds, and, in that time, James felt his jaw slacken. That wasn't a spell that they had learned in school yet; James wasn't sure how Remus would have come across it, let alone master it.

With the library clean, Herbert let go of James' arms, though not before giving it an extra painful squeeze. Without looking back, James, Remus, and Peter quickly walked away from Herbert and the library stacks. They met Sirius, who was still standing in the large open atrium-like space of the library. Without offering a word of explanation, James grabbed his friend's arm, not as hard as Herbert, and steered him out into the hallway.

* * *

The boys stumbled into the Gryffindor common room five minutes later than they should have. They had rushed back from the library at top speed, hoping beyond hope that someone didn't catch them when they hadn't actually broken any school rules. Sure, they were a little late, but in the grand scheme of things, it wasn't that much.

Luckily, as they crossed the threshold of the Fat Lady portrait, stumbling over each other and ending up in a large, limbs-akimbo pile, they had made it apparently scot free. James scrambled up from their pile and let out a joyous whoop. Things had been so negative, so against him, for so long that even this small win made James feel so excited he had to let those few students who were congregated in the common room know about it.

"Okay," Sirius spoke up, brushing off dust from his robes as he stood, "we may have a spell that can get us into a Slytherin meeting, provided that one of the spells that Remus' has found actually works. Now we just have to find a way to convince a professor of what we've heard. They've all basically said they won't believe our word on it."

"We'll find something, I'm sure," James said, trying to sound reassuring. He was still riding high from their triumph of only a moments prior and didn't want Sirius, with his practical, reasonable question bring down his mood. Sirius shrugged in response, obviously not truly believing James' optimism.

The rest of the group was quiet for several seconds before Remus suddenly started moving towards the dorm rooms.

"I may have something to help us with the professors overhearing an incriminating conversation," he stated simply before heading off towards their dorm rooms. James, Sirius, and Peter stood staring at several seconds before following Remus for the second time that night.

'Might have to talk to Remus about these sudden exits with only minimal explanations,' he thought as he climbed the stairs in front of his other friends.

* * *

James leaned against his bedpost, anxiously watching Remus dig through his trunk. The skinny, light-haired boy had been extremely stingy on the details surrounding his solution to their lack-of-believability problem. He'd simply walked into their dorm room and begun digging through his trunk. James and Sirius had thrown him a few questions, but no answers were forthcoming. Remus had just been silently digging.

"Ahh, here it is!" he finally said, rising out of his trunk. Clutched like a precious baby in his hands was a glass-like orb. It was clear at the moment, though James knew that, once filled it would cloud over. His eyes grew wide in excitement and a feeling much like the one when he'd gotten the invisibility cloak washed over him.

"No way! Where'd you get that?" James asked, his tone incredulous. It was a recording orb, one where you could record information and store it for later. It could then be played back as many times as was necessary. However, they were exceedingly rare, extremely hard to get your hands on. Even with their immense wealth, the Potters had only ever owned one. James' father had explained that the ministry possessed nearly all orbs in existence and only a few had managed to filter into the wider market.

"My dad, ah, liberated it from his job at the Ministry when he, ah, left," Remus looked at the floor as he spoke, obviously trying to be evasive about the topic of the orb. In all honesty, James didn't really care how Remus had come to possess the orb. He was just glad that once again they'd had a small win and made even more progress towards their end goal.

Slowly and surely, they were chipping away at the Slytherins.


	24. Chapter 23: Crack

**Chapter Twenty Three**

**Crack**

_Success is simple. Do what's right, the right way, at the right time._

_~Arnold H. Glasgow_

"Aberto," James spoke, pointing his wand at the lock. For a minute nothing happened, and James was a little disheartened. "Let me see that book again," he spoke, reaching for the book open in Remus' lap. The other boy had been rapidly flipping back and forth through pages, scratching out notes on what he found there. Remus didn't hear James' words, so the other boy reached over and grabbed the book from his friends' lap. Just as he did that, the lock that was sitting across the dorm exploded.

The four boys sat in silence for several seconds, taking in the events that had just transpired.

"I guess you don't actually need this," Remus spoke, once the initial shock of the explosion had worn off. He then reached over and grabbed the book back from a gapping James. That seemed to wake James up and he jumped to his feet and began whooping and hollering in excitement.

"Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes! Yes!" James exclaimed before tiring himself out and returning to his spot on the floor. "Now you try, Sirius." James got another lock and put it in front of his friend. He then slide back to be beside Sirius and watched his friend with the charm.

They had been working on learning as many unlocking charms beside alohomora as they could. The belief was that if they could have an arsenal, then whatever locking or sticking charm the Slytherins were using on their door would be no match for the four Gryffindors. It was slow work, though. Today was the first time James had made anything happen to the lock and it still had a fair delay. Sirius had yet to have any result and Peter hadn't even worked up the courage to make an attempt. Remus said he would be put to better use researching and hadn't been practicing ay of the spells.

However, the hard work was not deterring James. He was riding a wave of recent small success and a strong belief that he was in the right and that those who were in the right would eventually succeed, even if it took them a little longer than they would have liked.

"Aberto," Sirius spoke, waving his wand as he said it. James held his breath, waiting for the lock to do something, anything. They'd made progress already, they should be able to keep moving forward and not slip backwards. However, even after several seconds, nothing happened.

Sirius angrily muttered under his breath, stood up and kicked the lock across the room. Peter, who had been sitting in the path of the lock, had to quickly dodge out of the way. "Sorry Peter," Sirius then muttered. He then slumped down on his bed, burying his head in his arms.

"Well, I think that's enough work for today," Remus spoke. He closed his book, tucked away his notes and quill, and stood up. He'd been sitting for several hours and as he stood, he stretched out his tired muscles. James readily agreed. If he pushed too hard, he was worried that he might make it so his friends gave up on the whole thing.

He was more invested in the whole scheme than anyone else. Remus was, at best lukewarm about all of their pranking and rule-breaking initiatives. Peter only ever seemed enthused when James and Sirius were enthused. And Sirius, though wanted to change their current reputation, thought it would be better to go about it with a prank. So, James had to tread carefully lest he push too hard and everything come crashing down around him.

"Finals will soon be upon us. You need to make sure you are looking over all of your notes and practicing the spells we have learned this year. You will have to do a written portion, which involves explaining spells, understanding theory, and discussing important aspects of magic. There will also be a practical portion were you will be asked to perform some of the spells learned over the past year. Both are equally important to your final grade and your final grade will eventually come to determine the classes you can take," Professor McGonagall explained one day in early May.

As James heard those words, he let out a groan. Upcoming exams meant multiple things for him, and none of them good. First, it meant that he would have to start studying and preparing, which would take up a significant portion of his time. That would mean that he wouldn't have as much time to work on cracking the Slytherin problem. Second, the coming of exams meant the coming of the end of the year. Soon, first year would be over and any progress they had made towards the Slytherin problem would be for naught. Next year would mean different Slytherins and the potential that no one wanted to really investigate something that had happened a year before. They needed to wrap all of this up before everyone left for the summer.

The first years were then dismissed and, without even standing up, James rounded on his friends. "We have some figuring we need to do," he whispered. Sirius and Remus gave him quizzical looks, wondering what had caused this reaction in James. Peter, for his part, looked worried, like James had discovered something truly awful.

"Lunch?" Sirius suggested, which was where all of the students were currently heading. It was obvious that Sirius was hungry and didn't want to be distracted from his food.

"Somewhere more private," James spoke, "the common room should be pretty empty at this moment. We can grab something quick for lunch and head there." James nodded his head like the decision was made and was glad that his friends didn't immediately protest. The way things had been going, with James essentially pulling his friends along in the past few weeks, he wasn't sure they trusted his planning anymore.

"As long as I can eat," Sirius responded, as the boys headed off with the rest of the student body. They made a quick stop in the Great Hall, grabbing sandwiches and sweets. Sirius stuffed his pockets more than the others and James wondered if Sirius was going through a growth spurt with the amount of food he was eating. Once they'd grabbed what they thought would be enough to sustain them through their afternoon classes, the boys headed out of the hall.

Most of the students were in the Great Hall, though with all the different schedules, they didn't all necessarily eat at the same time. It was also a fairly nice early May day, so there were quite a few students who had decided to venture out into the grounds and the somewhat warm weather. James hoped that it all combined to mean that there would only be one or two other people in the Gryffindor common room so that no one could overhear their conversation. James figured they needed to meet now, while they were still early in the end-of-the-year chaos, to plan out their priorities and how they would go about managing everything.

"Okay," James said as the boys took a seat at a table near the one of the windows in the common room. James had been right in his assumption and there were only two lone students in the common room. One was a third year girl who was sitting in an opposite corner working away on something. The other was a sixth year boy who was flopped across one of the couches, fast asleep. Neither one seemed to cause much worry of them overhearing.

"What figuring do we need to do?" Remus asked. He pulled out a quill and some parchment as he did so, supposing correctly that he would be the one recording their decisions.

"It's getting close to crunch time," James began. He paused to quickly assess his friends and see if they were paying attention. Remus had the quill poised over the paper, waiting to scratch out information; Peter was staring at James' with rapt attention; Sirius was busy stuffing his face but James was pretty sure he was listening, nonetheless. "Finals will be upon us soon. The end of the year is coming up quickly. If we don't plan out our priorities then something will end up slipping through the cracks. So, I was thinking we should come up with a schedule. Make sure we have time to study, to keep up with our schoolwork, to plan our end of the year prank, and to get to the bottom of the Slytherin problem."

As James was speaking, Remus was busy writing down thoughts. He then scooted his piece of parchment down a few inches and began to draw a grid, like a calendar to divide up their time. Sirius swallowed a rather large piece of turkey sandwich and then spoke.

"While I think it is important to figure out our time, it would also be less of an issue if we left one of those things off the list. I'm sure teachers won't be too harsh with the schoolwork; at the very least the load will hopefully be kept consistent. So, studying and schoolwork shouldn't take up too much more time than it is currently. If we then only add planning an end of the year prank, there's really no need for this discussion."

James had been expecting pushback on the Slytherin problem. Sirius and Remus had been pushing back for months. So, he wasn't really surprised, but he was a little saddened. He knew that Sirius was less concerned about reputation than James was. James had heard rumours about the Black's, none of which seemed to apply to Sirius, but his friend had apparently paid these rumours, these beliefs about the Black's reputation, no heed. So, James was pretty sure that some students and teachers thinking he was no good was not really all that new to Sirius. But it was very, very new to James and he didn't like it one bit.

He wanted people to think well of him. He wanted them to see him as a great student, a fantastic Quidditch player, and a prankster king. He didn't want people associating his name with broom tampering, with meddling and obstructing Quidditch. He needed to clear his name!

"Sirius might be right," Remus spoke. "There hasn't been any other sabotage attempts in months. In fact, the game a few days ago was a Slytherin game and no one had any problems with their brooms, neither Slytherin nor Hufflepuff. Maybe things are done for the time being and then, when next year starts no one will be talking about it."

James grumbled at his friend's fairly logical argument. There hadn't been a broom tampering incident since February, but James would not be deterred.

"Well, Gryffindor hasn't played a match since the last incident. They've only been tampering with matches that have Gryffindor competing. That way we look extra guilty. There's still one more Gryffindor match. They've probably been saving up all their planning for that!" James was essentially yelling at the end of his speech. The other two Gryffindors in the common room had been roused to their presence at his words and were now looking over curiously at the first-years, though the sixth-year who had been sleeping only moments before was also looking over with a little bit of anger in his eyes.

"Okay. We can try and plan it all out," Remus acquiesced. He was shooting furtive looks at the other occupants of the common room, hoping that they would soon lose interest. James slumped down in his seat a little sheepish.

"Yeah, no need to get your knickers in a bunch," Sirius said, taking another large bite out of his sandwich.

The boys spent the rest of their lunch organizing their time so that they could complete all four goals. They blocked out time to study for each of their subjects, though Remus argued that some of that could overlap with their assigned schoolwork because the assigned work would probably help them on their exams. They set times to work on the end of the year prank. It hadn't been a priority for James for several months now but once they'd finally cleared their names, they would need to do something to re-establish their prankster reputation. And lastly, but definitely not least, they planned when they would stake out the Slytherin's and attempt to reveal their secrets.

Once they'd figured all that out, they began their new routine. They went to their next class and then spent their free time as they had planned it out. Several weeks passed in that fashion, with the boys making small bits of progress in each of their four fields, though they'd had more defeats than success in the realm of the Slytherins.

James watched as Remus ticked off another mark on a scrap of parchment he'd been holding on to. The small scrap was nearly filled with small scratch marks. Each small tick on that sheet of paper was like a knife to the heart. Remus had taken to accounting for all the attempts the group had made at getting into the Slytherin meeting, and each time they had failed. At that point, both the number of attempts and the number of failures were equal.

And that fact was extremely painful to James. Despite their practice with unlocking spells, the Gryffindor boys had yet to discover the correct spell that the Slytherins were using, they seemed to change the spell with each meeting. And, on the rare occasion when James was sure they'd guessed the right spell, they'd failed to be able to perform it accurately. All of it led to the four of them standing awkwardly outside a locked door under the invisibility cloak, futilely trying to unlock it until Slytherins began reappearing.

"Well," Remus mused as he silently counted up the tally marks on the parchment, "Twelfth times the charm." He tried to make his voice sound cheery, but there was a slight depressive quality to it.

"I don't think that's the saying, Remus," Sirius spoke, squinting out the window at the bright sun that hung high in the sky. The quartet was sitting in the library, supposedly studying for their upcoming finals. However, none of them were really all that involved in their studies at that moment.

Sirius was staring out the window, at what exactly, wasn't clear. Remus was busy scratching on and studying his piece of parchment. Peter was staring out across the library at a group of girls, the other Gryffindor first years. James had trained his gaze on the table two over from where they currently sat. Occupying that table was Cadwallader, a member of the Slytherin Quidditch team. He'd been working on a large paper, which involved a lot of scowling and scratching out of things.

After nearly an hour, Cadwallader seemed to give up on his essay. That, or he finished it, though James was sceptical about that one. The burly Slytherin quickly began packing up and hurried out of the library. At that, James stood, startling his otherwise distracted friends. Something about the fairly suddenness of Cadwallader's movements had triggered something in James. No one goes from intently scratching and writing on parchment to suddenly cleaning up. There wasn't a look of accomplishment, a rocking back in the chair to observe his work, or a quick second reading that James would have associated with the completion of a work that so much effort went into. There also wasn't a frustrated sigh or any throwing. Cadwallader had simply been working on his essay one moment and then, as if he realised the time, quickly packed up and left.

"We've got to go! Cadwallader is headed to a meeting right now. I just know it!"


	25. Chapter 24: Secrets Revealed

**Chapter Twenty Four**

**Secrets Revealed**

* * *

_I'm glad I did it, partly because it was worth it, but mostly because I shall never have to do it again. _

_~Mark Twain_

* * *

"We've got to go! Cadwallader is headed to a meeting right now. I just know it!" James exclaimed. He had, only moments before watched the lumbering Slytherin suddenly give up on his work and hurriedly leave the library. It was strange behaviour, because James could see no reason why Cadwallader had suddenly left. The other boy must be up to something and a Slytherin up to something meant it was time for James and his friends to act.

James quickly grabbed his untouched books, stuffed them in his bag, pulled out his invisibility cloak, and nearly bolted from the library. The others scrambled to follow after, but James didn't slow down. He wasn't about to blow this opportunity. Not with school ending and the final Quidditch match of the year fast approaching.

Luckily, Cadwallader had a slow, slightly stumbling gait and this gave James, and especially Sirius, Remus, and Peter, the opportunity to catch up. The four lagged back a little until they were able to find a secluded section of hallway and disappeared beneath the invisibility cloak. Once they could no longer be spotted, they hurried to get as close to Cadwallader as they dared. Less than a meter behind, James was slightly worried that the sounds of their breathing, or their footsteps, or even the rustling of their clothes would be heard, but Cadwallader noticed nothing. Sirius shot James a look that clearly expressed a doubt at the longer haired boy's intelligence. James was forced to think of something as unfunny as being discovered by an infuriated McGonagall in order to keep from bursting out in laughter.

As Cadwallader slowly trudged through the hallways, James felt his heart start to beat faster and faster. By the time the doorway of the classroom where the Slytherins had been meeting loomed into view, James' heart was beating so fast he was worried it might explode or something. Remus, who was walking directly behind the messy haired boy and must have sensed his anxiety, put a comforting hand on James' shoulder. Feeling slight relief, but also figuring that holding onto each other would help ensure they all got through the door, James grabbed hold of Remus behind him and Sirius to his right side. The other three boys all grabbed onto each other, creating a square.

The door was closed, and most likely locked, but as Cadwallader approached, it slowly opened, as if sensing his presence. However, when he was about three steps away, the door started closing again. A small part of James began to stress and he picked up the pace, causing his friends to have to rush quicker as well. A part of him knew that they wouldn't make it through the door before it closed, not unless they were right on Cadwallader's heels. That, he would surely sense and they would easily be discovered.

"Hey! Cadwallader! Hold the door, would you? I forgot my key!" a booming voice called out from behind the four and their target. Neither James nor any of his friends dared look, but he was pretty certain it was Bletchley, another member of the Slytherin Quidditch team, who had shouted.

Whoever it was, he caused Cadwallader to stop his progress halfway through the door and lean against it. The burly Slytherin had to put a fair amount of his weight behind the action as the door kept, quite forcefully, trying to close itself. James couldn't believe his luck. They'd spent the past several weeks perfecting various unlocking spells and yet here was an opportunity to slip through the door without magic.

The four Gryffindors were in between Cadwallader and the assumed Bletchley. They could step out of the way, allow Bletchley into the room and then be faced with a closed door they would have to try to open with magic. It was a situation they had found themselves in, according to Remus' count, twelve times before with no luck. However, they could also just continue through the door. It would be held open until Bletchley, who was behind them, made it through the door. It was like fate had finally decided to smile down on them.

James, Sirius, Peter, and Remus slowed their progress down a little and delicately slipped through the open door, passing a very agitated Cadwallader. Despite the overwhelming desire to celebrate this momentous success, James decided it would be best to move out of the path of the doorway and find an out of the way corner. It would not do them any good to have a Slytherin accidently bump into them while they were invisible in the Slytherins' secret meeting.

Remus, always the strategist, silently began directing the others to a back corner, away from everyone else. As quietly as they'd ever done anything in their lives, James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter sat down on four seats and waited for the meeting to begin. As the realisation of what they'd accomplished hit James, a silly lopsided smile crossed his face.

Quickly enough, the Slytherins began finding seats to sit in or walls to lean against. The meeting was about to begin and everyone wanted to make sure they had a comfortable spot to spend the time. Light chatter still permeated the room, though the large amount of chatter and low volume at which each person spoke made it next to impossible to hear exactly what any one group was actually saying. James and his friends would just have to wait for the meeting to begin in earnest and hope that something incriminating would be said then.

Suddenly, a hush filled the room and Warrington, the captain of the Quidditch team and, in James' mind at least, the de facto leader of the broom tamperers, walked in. All eyes were instantly on him, especially James', Sirius', Remus', and Peter's. Warrington stood at the front of the room, carefully surveying the crowd. For a brief flash, James wondered if the older Slytherin somehow knew that the Gryffindors were in that room. But that couldn't be. It took an extremely powerful magician to see through an invisibility cloak. And this invisibility cloak seemed more powerful than most.

"Evening, gentlemen," Warrington finally spoke, his previously tense posture relaxingly slightly. Whatever Warrington had been looking for, he must not have found it. "I wanted to start off tonight with a discussion of the teams standings for the Quidditch Cup. Now, unfortunately, the determination of the winner is decidedly out of our hands. We tried our best last match to score enough goals to secure our victory, but Hufflepuff managed to score too many goals to keep our margins in the places they needed to be." Warrington shot an icy disapproving look at the Slytherin keeper who was sinking lower and lower into his seat.

James desperately fought back the annoyed, frustrated, defeated groan that quickly built inside him. It was just another Quidditch meeting! They were discussing logistics about how much Ravenclaw needed to beat Gryffindor by in order to ensure that Slytherin would still win the cup. James listened at first, hoping that Warrington would mention illegal conduct that he wanted his team to partake in to help ensure the victory, but none was forthcoming. Only the comforting, assured hand of Remus placed on James' shoulder kept the messy haired boy from jumping up and leaving the meeting.

All that hard work, combined with that rare stroke of luck, and all they managed to sneak into was a lousy Quidditch strategy meeting! It made James' blood boil and he turned to his friend, the owner of the hand currently keeping him calm, and searched his face. James was looking for something, anything, that explained how Remus, who had put in the same, if not more effort as James could remain so calm in the face of yet another setback.

"Just wait," Remus mouthed at James in response. Something in the sandy haired boy's eyes and posture put James at ease and he chose to trust his friend. Maybe they could still get something slightly incriminating and just sell it really well.

* * *

Thankfully, the Quidditch team meeting only lasted about twenty minutes. Unfortunately, nothing, not a single thing that Warrington, or any other member of the Slytherin team, said was the slightest bit incriminating. Remus' hope and optimism had obviously been misplaced. This was not their moment, despite the amount of luck and good fortune they'd had in getting into the meeting.

Maybe they shouldn't even be trying to get into meetings. Maybe all the planning of the broom tampering was happening in a corner of the Slytherin common room. Or maybe they'd stopped planning, believing they'd done enough to secure Slytherin victory. Or, and James hated thinking it, maybe it had never been the Slytherins at all. Maybe they'd spent the last few months going after the wrong perpetrators.

James slunk low in his seat, avoiding the questioning look Sirius was sending him. His friend was obviously as frustrated and hopeless as James was and he just couldn't face admitting his defeat to his friends as well as to himself. This year had so much promise, and it had so quickly gone downhill. Sure, there were positives, plenty of the them James was sure. It was just that, at that moment, he could only really recall meeting his friends. All the other thoughts and memories rattling around in his head were about things that gone wrong or the bad things that happened.

Slowly the Slytherins began to stand and filter out of the classroom. James watched Cadwallader and Bletchley leave, their heads bent in discussion, probably over Bletchley's missing key. None of the Gryffindors moved, waiting instead until the room was empty. That way their slow, depressed exit could be accomplished without the fear of being discovered.

However, after about only half of the team and its reserves had left, a strange thing occurred. Instead of more Slytherins leaving the room, a few new ones began entering. James and the others sat up, extremely curious about what was going on. As the new Slytherins, mostly sixth and seventh years, entered, no one partook in chitchat. Instead, the newcomers, as well as a smattering of the Quidditch players quickly took their seats. Once again, Warrington took his place at the front of the room.

"Evening, gentlemen. First off, I'd like to start by saying this will probably be our last meeting of the year. After you are dismissed, I strongly suggest destroying anything and everything that has to do with our goings on here over the past few months. You won't need them after this and hanging on to them is only asking to be found out.

"Now, onto the agenda for tonight. We are fast approaching the final Quidditch game of the year. Slytherin is in fairly good standing to win the cup, but it definitely isn't a sure thing. There are definitely some things that can be done to ensure victory. However, this time around, we need to be subtler. No more obvious broom tampering. Dumbledore can still call the whole thing and then all of our efforts will have been for naught.

"So, I open it up now to suggestions on how to subtly sabotage Gryffindor." As Warrington was speaking, Remus had carefully reached into his school bag and pulled out his recording orb. He silently activated it and the orb began recording everything that was said within the room.

Ideas quickly passed throughout the room. Most of them, like cursing and jinxing Gryffindor players, were anything but subtle. Others, like tampering with bludgers so they were more likely to go after Gryffindors than Ravenclaws, were more appropriate. After all, like the person who made the suggestion stated, rouge bludgers were not an uncommon occurrence.

This meeting, unlike the Quidditch meeting, lasted almost an hour. It involved a fair amount of debate over the tactics that would be used, and a fair amount of planning to ensure that the tampering would not be obvious and definitely not be traced back to any of them. All in all, it was a lot of extremely incriminating information that the Gryffindors were witnesses too. And all of it was handily recorded by Remus for posterity, and as proof of the whole thing.

When the meeting finally broke up and all of the Slytherins slowly left the room -apparently curfew wasn't really a concern for a group of students willing to sink to illegal means simply in order to secure a silly house sport trophy- James felt such a sense of joy and relief. Finally! They'd finally done it! They'd gotten everything they needed to clear their names! James excitedly threw off the cloak and began dancing around the empty classroom.

"We did it! We did it! We did it!" James chanted in a sing-song voice as he danced. Sirius quickly joined in with the dancing and chanting, linking arms with his friend and spinning in circles. Peter clapped to the beat of their chanting but didn't join in further. Remus carefully folded the invisibility cloak and then deposited it and the now milky coloured orb into his bag.

"As much as I want to celebrate now, we're not done yet," Remus spoke, slightly dampening the mood. "We still need to bring our evidence to a professor and see what they do with it. And I think we should do it quickly. Warrington mentioned destroying other evidence that individual members possess and, if we can get a professor to act quickly enough, we may be able to save that evidence."

Remus' words had a sobering effect on the others, and James and Sirius stopped their dancing and chanting. Quickly, all four exited the room and, with newfound purpose, hurried down the corridors towards the professors' offices.


	26. Chapter 25: Telling Tales

**Chapter Twenty-Five**

**Telling Tales**

* * *

_The man who comes with a tale about others has himself an axe to grind_

_~Chinese Proverb_

* * *

The four Gryffindor boys barrelled into Professor McGonagall's office. They didn't knock or wait to be invited in. They didn't even check to see if Professor McGonagall was even in her office. Instead they just barged through the door and began excitedly talking over each other, desperately trying to get their story out.

"We got into the classroom and-"

"The Slytherin's are definitely behind the broom-"

"Alectus Warrington is the ringleader of-"

"We have undeniable proof that the Slytherins were involved-"

"We've cleared our names! It wasn't us-"

"Professor McGonagall, you have to believe-"

"We have absolute proof-"

"It was not us that did-"

Their voices mixed together and blended into an almost unintelligible mess. As they tried to talk over each other, get their point across, they each began talking louder and louder, trying to be heard over the others. All in all, it was completely ineffective.

McGonagall, for her part, was sitting at her desk. Judging from the large stack of parchment on her desk, she had been in the midst of grading a paper she had set her students when the four barged in. Her initial reaction to them was surprise, obviously not expecting a sudden arrival of four excited first years. However, after processing what she could understand of what the four were saying, her expression hardened. Slowly, she lowered her quill, pursed her lips, and, after trying to listen to four young boys talk over each other for about thirty seconds, stood from the desk.

"Enough, boys," Professor McGonagall spoke, her voice not particularly loud but commanding enough that Sirius, Remus, James, and Peter all stopped talking at exactly the same moment. For the first time since entering her office, the four took a good, appraising look of Professor McGonagall. What they saw made them shrink back a little.

"Apparently," she continued, looking down at the boys through her glasses, "your parents did not bother to teach you any manners. When entering the space of another person, you should always knock and wait to be invited in." The four boys shrunk away from her gaze and words, turning to look at each other to see who the person would be to speak for them.

"I'm really sorry Professor, but we have something really important to talk to you about! The Slytherins are plotting to sabotage the final Quidditch match of the year! We-" James spoke, alone this time, trying to explain their situation. However, he was cut off by an increasingly stern look from McGonagall.

She let out an exasperated sigh before speaking again. "I've heard quite enough of this talk against the Slytherins. This inter-house competition has gone on for far too long and I will have no more of it!"

"But, Professor!" James tried protesting, but McGonagall held up a finger, keeping him from saying anything further. Remus interpreted the situation as one where McGonagall would hear absolutely nothing from them unless it involved solid evidence. He then carefully pulled out the recording orb, a little more hesitant than he had previously been.

It had only just occurred to him that presenting an illegally gotten, highly regulated item to the strict, rule-following Professor McGonagall might not have been the best idea. What if she confiscated it? Reported it to the Ministry? That would not only get him in trouble, but also his father. He'd just have to hope that the information recorded on the ill-begotten orb was of a high enough value that McGonagall was more focused on that than the sphere itself.

As soon as the sphere cleared Remus' bag, the glow from the information held within filled the room. McGonagall's eyes instantly focused on it and a suspicious scowl formed on her face. She obviously knew that Remus shouldn't have it but was giving him the benefit of the doubt of its providence. Not wanting to give her any more time to think about the whole thing, Remus quickly began playing the recording.

The conspiratorial voices of the Slytherins began playing throughout the office.

"Evening, gentlemen. First off, I'd like to start by saying this will probably be our last meeting of the year." A quiet fell over the assembled crowd as Warrington spoke as clearly as if he'd been standing in the room. Professor McGonagall's face looked a little sceptical at first, wondering what exactly the boys had managed to record.

"Now, onto the agenda for tonight. We are fast approaching the final Quidditch game of the year. Slytherin is in fairly good standing to win the cup, but it definitely isn't a sure thing. There are definitely some things that can be done to ensure victory."

Only a few minutes into the recording, Professor McGonagall began to open her mouth. From what she'd heard that far, there wasn't anything incriminating. Were the boys trying to pass an innocent Quidditch meeting off as something more sinister. However, each boy looked at her with such pleading eyes that she decided to at least let the recording play out and see how it ended. There was still time for admonitions and lectures about proper Gryffindor behaviour.

"However, this time around, we need to be subtler. No more obvious broom tampering. Dumbledore can still call the whole thing and then all of our efforts will have been for naught. So, I open it up now to suggestions on how to subtly sabotage Gryffindor."

James studied Professor McGonagall's face. It went from stern, to suspicious, to concerned, and it finally settled on closed and unreadable; James had no idea what McGonagall was thinking as the recording came to an end and that fact unsettled him. The orb finally ended and all four boys turned their focus onto the professor. The room was silent, not a single one of them daring to say a word until McGonagall said something.

After the longest five minutes of James' life, Professor McGonagall moved from behind her desk and silently crossed the floor of her office. The four boys remained rooted in place, too afraid to even move lest it end up with the whole situation blowing up in their faces. For her part, McGonagall also didn't say a word as she moved across the room. It wasn't until she reached the door that she paused and finally looked at James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter.

"Follow, please," she commanded before leaving her office, the door left open to the foursome.

* * *

The walk through the hallways and corridors of Hogwarts was so silent that James swore he could hear the flapping of owl wings all the way up in the owlery. James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter were still far too on edge, worried about where they were going and what it would mean for them, for them to say a single word. The four of them even seemed to be holding their breath.

They remained completely silent, instead communicating through strained looks and anxious glances. Each was trying to ask the other if they knew, or had any guesses about, what was going to happen next. Were they in trouble? Were they going to be expelled for having a regulated, most likely illegal, magical object? None of them knew anything, and that only made the others more and more anxious.

Finally, they came to a stop in front of a large griffin statue.

The questioning glances continued. James and the others must have walked passed that very statue multiple times since arriving at Hogwarts. It was just a statue. So why had McGonagall brought them there? Was it a secret entrance, like the many the boys had previously discovered? Did it lead to a torture chamber, where the boys would be punished for using and possessing a restricted device? Panic struck James as one dark scenario after another played itself out in his head.

"Droobles," Professor McGonagall stated plainly, her face expressionless. James turned to Sirius and the two of them had to stifle the chuckles. What a strange thing to say in such an intense moment.

Suddenly, the statue sprung into motion and began twisting slowly upwards. As it moved, it revealed a winding staircase. Once the griffin statue was high enough that it cleared the heads of the awaiting five Gryffindors, Professor McGonagall stepped onto the staircase and motioned for the boys to follow her. Slightly hesitantly, the four of them stepped right behind her. The five of them then carefully climbed their way up to a small landing in front of a wooden door.

McGonagall knocked on the door and a muffled voice on the other side invited them in. The door opened, revealing an elegant office chock full of books. In the middle was a large, ornate desk, behind which sat Headmaster Dumbledore.

"Professor McGonagall, to what do I owe the honour? Your Gryffindors causing you undo trouble?" Dumbledore had a wry smile on his face and a twinkle in his eye as he silently greeted each of the four boys standing awkwardly behind McGonagall.

"They discovered something, Headmaster. Something extremely important, and I think you should hear about it," Professor McGonagall turned from Dumbledore to face the four first years. "Mr. Lupin?" Everyone turned to look at Remus. His face flushed red before he rather awkwardly dug through his bag in search of the orb. He'd deposited it there when Professor McGonagall had walked across her office and asked the others to join her on her trek through the hallways, and now he brought it out and played it for Professor Dumbledore.

Once again, the room quieted at the voices of the Slytherins' emanated from the glowing orb in Remus' hands. Like Professor McGonagall before him, once the recording ended, Professor Dumbledore was silent for a long while. He sat behind his desk, his fingers knitted together, and he stared out at the assembly before him through his half-moon glasses. After several long seconds, Dumbledore spoke. His words came out carefully, like he was weighing each one. James wondered if Dumbledore was trying to contain his emotions.

"Professor McGonagall, if you would please retrieve Professor Slughorn for me? There are definitely some things we need to discuss." Professor McGonagall nodded, and then headed out of the office in search of the head of Slytherin house. Remus, James, Sirius, and Peter were once again left without clear instructions and, as a result, they stood around awkwardly.

James took the opportunity to further observe Dumbledore's office. Most of the walls were covered with bookshelves. Nearly every square inch of bookshelf was covered with colourful spines denoting countless volumes. James was almost certain it would take him several lifetimes to read all the books in Dumbledore's office.

Other surfaces in the office were covered with strange magical objects that James had never seen before. He would have loved to examine them closer but stood rooted in place. Now was not the time to see the kinds of magic that Dumbledore surrounded himself with. On one shelf though, James could easily see the Sorting Hat. It was quiet, as if sleeping, and James wondered if the Hat was only ever animated when it was performing its assigned duty. Finally, the last object James registered was a perch for some sort of fairly large bird, though the bird was elsewhere.

On the wall space above the bookshelves hung portraits of men and women. The small plaques attached to each portrait informed James that they were all ex-Headmasters and Headmistresses of Hogwarts. Each individual moved throughout their portrait, completely oblivious to the goings-on below them. Some of the portraits were even empty.

Finally, after what felt like half an hour, but was probably only ten minutes, Professor McGonagall returned, a chipper Professor Slughorn in tow. He smiled first at Professor Dumbledore, who was still sitting behind his desk, before turning to James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter.

"You wanted to see me, Headmaster?" he spoke, his cheery demeanour slipping slightly to confusion and concern. The sight of the four Gryffindors had obviously surprised the potions professor.

"Mr. Lupin, Mr. Black, Mr. Pettigrew, and Mr. Potter discovered something about your Slytherins that I am certain you will want to hear about. Mr. Lupin, if you would be so kind as to indulge us one more time." This time, Professor Dumbledore stood and walked around to the front of his desk. Remus once again activated the orb and allowed it to play out. As Professor Slughorn listened, his face became more and more concerned and his brow became more and more furrowed. Remus took that as a good sign.

When the recording finished, Slughorn all but collapsed into an awaiting chair placed in front of Dumbledore's desk. He dragged his hand through his hair and looked expectantly at the other adults. Instead of discussing things, Dumbledore turned towards the four boys.

"Thank you so much for bringing this matter to our attention, boys. If you don't mind me asking, how did you go about getting this information?" Dumbledore didn't look accusatory, or like he was upset at them for having discovered what they did. If anything, it looked like he was curious. James guessed he was just trying to get the whole picture of the events of that evening.

"Well, it's a bit of a long story," James spoke, his usual confidant tone replaced with a slightly hesitant one. James shot each of the others a look, obviously making sure that he had their approval to share most of their story with the professors. Remus, Peter, and Sirius all nodded in turn.

"Back at the last Quidditch game, I spotted something suspicious with Alectus Warrington, the Slytherin Quidditch captain. We thought he might have something to do with the broom tamperings. So, we decided to conduct our own investigation of sorts and see if there was any proof to support our suspicions."

"We followed the Slytherins, trying to see if they were meeting and planning," Sirius jumped in, "It took us a while, but tonight we were able to sneak into a meeting without any of the Slytherins seeing us. We then recorded the information on the orb and brought it straight here." James noticed that Sirius sidestepped the invisibility cloak, and internally cheered his friend. They'd already shown the staff of Hogwarts that they were in possession of one illicit magical object. They didn't need to go advertising a second.

Luckily, Dumbledore didn't question how they went unseen. Instead, he simply nodded at what the pair had said before speaking again, "The heads and I will discuss what we are going to do with this information. If you would please leave the orb for us to evaluate." Dumbledore motioned to the recording orb still clutched in Remus' hands. Slightly reluctant, Remus set it down on Dumbledore's desk.

"Now," Dumbledore continued, "you best be heading off to bed. Curfew is only a few minutes from now and we wouldn't want you getting into any undo trouble. Thank you," Professor Dumbledore made it clear that the boys were being dismissed back to their dorm rooms. James wanted to say something else, but Professor McGonagall gave him a look that told him he shouldn't push his luck at the moment. Realising that there was nothing more for them to do, the four quietly exited the office.

Not one of them said a word until they were in the hallway. Then, as soon as their feet touched the ground, James and Sirius both let out whoops of pure glee. Finally, after all their hard work, they'd accomplished exactly what they wanted to. Now, they just had to wait and see how everything would shake out.


	27. Chapter 26: Something Wicked

**Chapter Twenty-Six**

**Something Wicked**

* * *

_If you want a happy ending, that depends, of course, on where you stop your story_

_~Orson Wells_

* * *

When James awoke the next day, the day after he'd finally shown Professor McGonagall and Professor Dumbledore what the Slytherins were up to, he felt like a brand new person. He was sure his positivity and cheeriness were surrounding him like a halo, emanating out of his every pore. He basically bounced down to breakfast, restraining the happy tune he wanted to sing all the while. Sirius, Remus, and Peter all seemed to be in similar, if slightly more muted, form.

James has suspected that their revelation would be the gossip de jour during breakfast. Someone was bound to have overseen or overheard the fallout of Professors Slughorn, McGonagall, and Dumbledore's discussion. A good reaming out, and a banning or disqualification would certainly have gotten out to someone. However, there was not even the slightest wisp of a conversation about anything Slytherin. Even the Slytherins did not seem like anything occurred. Most of the prime suspects were not at breakfast but considering the flexibility of upperclassmen's schedules and most of the Slytherins' penchant for skipping early classes, that was not all that strange.

"Do you think it's possible no one knows yet?" Sirius asked, his voice not much more than a whisper. He shot furtive looks around the dining hall to truly assess the situation.

"Or maybe the professors haven't done anything to them?" Peter squeaked, his face turning paler and paler with each passing second. At his words, worried expressions crossed Remus' and Sirius' faces. James could tell they were mulling over the possibility that Slughorn, McGonagall, and Dumbledore had chosen not to act against the Slytherins responsible for the broom tampering incidents.

"No!" James exclaimed, his voice loud, but his tone cool and calm. "Professor Dumbledore was far too upset at the last match, and there was far too in depth an investigation for nothing to come of our discovery of the true culprits. Trust me, the consequences will be apparent in no time at all. We just have to be patient."

* * *

"Ladies and Gentlemen! Players and spectators!" Professor Dumbledore's voice boomed over the crowd of excited students gathered at the Hogwarts Quidditch stadium. A whole two days had passed since the four Gryffindors had turned over their evidence and yet nothing had filtered out about what, if anything had happened to the Slytherins. James and the others were really hanging their last hope on something being done at this match. Dumbledore beginning the game with a speech definitely boded well.

A wide beaming smile crossed James' face and he gently elbowed Sirius in the side. 'This is it,' he mouthed to his friend before motioning towards the teachers' section of the stands. Dumbledore stood in the small box that was usually reserved for the announcer, Karlson. Finally, in front of the whole school they were going to learn the consequences of the Slytherins' deceptive and illegal tactics.

"As I know you are all aware, several of the Quidditch matches this year have been interrupted, and nearly invalidated, by illegal broom tampering. These actions were not only against the ideals of good sportsmanship and fair play but could have been potentially life threatening. They were cowardly acts inspired by a childish desire for a particular house and team to win the Quidditch cup." Dumbledore paused in his speech as excited and curious whispers rose up from the assembled students.

"I stand before you now to let you know the results of an investigation into these matters. New evidence has come to light that has made it very clear who was responsible. Now, some staff members have argued that the who of it all is not important for you to know." James noticed that as Dumbledore spoke, he ever so slightly glanced towards Professors Slughorn and Strinkley, both Slytherins. "However, as the tamperings have affected every one of you, and not just those who play Quidditch, I felt it important that you know.

"A small group of Slytherins, composed of both members of the Slytherin Quidditch team and those not on the team, took it upon themselves to ensure a Slytherin victory. These students first tampered with their own brooms, and those of their unsuspecting teammates, to throw off any suspicions. They then tampered with the Hufflepuff brooms in an attempt to throw suspicion onto the Gryffindor Quidditch team." At the announcement of the Slytherins' guilt, a loud boisterous cheer erupted from the Gryffindor section; their names had been cleared!

"Because of their underhanded tactics, and the fact that Slytherin team captain Alectus Warrington also captained the tampering efforts, the Slytherin Quidditch team has been disqualified from the competition for the school's Quidditch cup. Warrington has been banned from Hogwarts' Quidditch for the rest of his time here, and other individuals have received various other punishments in line with their roles and responsibilities." Towards the end of his announcement, Dumbledore was forced to yell over the increasingly loud crowd. The Gryffindor students continued to cheer and shout with joy. Some Ravenclaws and a significant portion of the Hufflepuffs quickly joined in. Then, on top of that, the Slytherins began booing and hissing, upset at being disqualified. It was a cacophony of noise that filled the large open-air stadium.

Dumbledore stood at the announcer's podium in the professors' section of the stadium, allowing the noise to continue, allowing the release of emotions that the sounds signified. Finally, after about five minutes, Dumbledore stepped up to the voice projection device and cleared his throat. The sound echoed throughout the stadium and slowly it quieted down the raucous crowd. Eventually, all of the gathered students stopped talking and turned their focus back to Dumbledore.

"Now, I know that this information is quite troubling, and I want to assure you that my door, as well as the doors of all of your professors, will be open to you to discuss this and any other matters that are troubling you. However, this is supposed to be a time of revelry and sporting prowess. The main reason of our gathering here today is to play and witness a good, fair Quidditch match. In times of distress, I often find a good distraction is some of the best medicine. So, without further ado," Professor Dumbledore punctuated his sentence by motioning towards the Quidditch pitch ground where Karl Broadmoor was patiently waiting to begin the match. Seconds later, players from Gryffindor and Ravenclaw excitedly marched out to the awaiting crowd.

Both teams had a bounce in their steps. Gryffindor because they had been cleared of any wrongdoing. Ravenclaw because they were now leading the standings for the cup and were in a very good position to clinch it all.

The match quickly commenced, and both teams played with a ferociousness that hadn't been present in previous matches. It was a close match, when one team would score a goal the other would do the same only seconds later. James, Remus, Sirius, and Peter were kept on the edge of their seats throughout the entire game. If Gryffindor beat Ravenclaw by 200 points, a not too difficult feat, then they could win the cup. However, there was never a time when either Gryffindor or Ravenclaw had more than a 30-point lead. Finally, after nearly three and a half hours of intense back and forth game play, the Ravenclaw seeker caught the snitch and ended the game.

Ravenclaw had won the match and, thanks to the Slytherins' disqualification, they had won the Quidditch cup. Despite their loss, the Gryffindor players and nearly every other member of the house was almost more ecstatic about the turn of events than the Ravenclaws. Gryffindor hadn't won, but neither had Slytherin. Gryffindor's reputation had been restored, and Slytherin's had been rightfully smeared. It all added up to an almost intoxicating gleefulness, and the Gryffindors chose as an outlet a loud, exuberant, and boisterous party.

* * *

"This has been the best day!" James exclaimed as he dropped down onto a couch in the Gryffindor common room beside his friends, Remus and Peter. Loud music and cheery chatter filled the room, nearly drowning out James' words. The party was in full swing and James and Sirius had been out mingling in the crowd, enjoying it all. Remus and Peter, the quieter of the four, had opted for a spot on a slightly out of the way couch where they could still be at the party and see it, but not been in the center of it all.

"Gryffindors sure know how to throw a party," Remus responded, having to yell quite a bit in order to be heard.

"That they do! And I like to think it's all for us! After all, we are responsible for the celebrations having been the ones who found the true culprits and provided irrefutable proof. Gryffindor is basically throwing a party in our honour!" James spoke smugly. He punctuated his words by crossing his hands behind his head, putting his feet up on a coffee table in front of the couch, and slouching down in a confident, yet relaxed manner.

"That seems rather cocky and bigheaded," a voice from behind James, Remus, and Peter spoke. James leaned his head over the back of the couch. Standing there, a slightly exasperated expression on her face, was Lily Evans. Her friends were standing around her, but her focus at that moment was solely on James. Peter squeaked slightly from James' right and became extremely focused on his shoes. James would have questioned his friend's actions, but he was more concerned with the petite red haired girl who'd just insulted him.

"It's not cocky and bigheaded if it's true," James responded, his head still hanging over the edge of the couch. Lily turned slightly back to her friend and rolled her eyes incredulously. James, now feeling a strong affront to his name and reputation, jumped to his feet and stared Lily down.

"Didn't you hear Professor Dumbledore today? He clearly stated that new evidence had come to light that implicated the Slytherins in the broom tamperings! Well we were the ones that found that evidence and brought it to Dumbledore! If it hadn't been for us, Gryffindor would still be suspects!" James then crossed his arms defiantly, as if daring Lily to push him again.

"Well," she spoke, meeting James' challenging stare with a confident one of her own, "if you think about it, if it hadn't been for you, Gryffindor wouldn't have been suspected in the first place. After all, it was the similarity between the jinxed Quidditch brooms and Severus' broom that initially put the blame on the Gryffindor team. So..." Lily didn't complete the thought, just let it hang in the air between them.

"Maybe you should think of that the next time you want to pick on an innocent person." Lily finished her statement with a nod before turning to her friends and leaving, heading for the girls' wing of the Gryffindor dormitories. James was left standing before the couch, his mouth slightly agape.

* * *

The final weeks of school passed in a blur of studying, textbooks, and written and practical exams. Before he really knew it, James and the rest of the Hogwarts students were preparing to head home for the summer. That night would be a going away feast and then the next day everyone would board the Hogwarts Express and return to London and their families.

However, as James stood in his dormitory, packing up his scattered belongings (it was a little crazy how spread out things got when someone had a full year), he couldn't help but feel it was a bittersweet moment. James was excited to be done his first year, to have accomplished so much. He couldn't wait to get home to his parents; no matter how decedent and delicious the cooking at Hogwarts was, it could not compare to his mother's in James' opinion.

But all that was tinged with the bitterness of leaving his friends behind. They would all be returning home, spread out across the country, and would most likely not see each other for another two months. After spending every minute of every day for the past nine months, the prospect of not seeing them made James sad and hesitant to leave.

'It's not time to say goodbye yet,' James thought as he stared at his nearly packed suitcase. The train didn't leave until the next morning and there was still an evening of celebration ahead of them. Not wanting to ruin anything with his melancholia, James pushed down his blue feelings and chose to focus on the fact that he still had a few more hours with the other three Gryffindors.

He, Remus, Sirius, and Peter headed down to the end-of-term feast at their normal time and took their normal spot at the Gryffindor table. Lily and the other first year girls sat a few spots away, similar bittersweet emotions displayed on their faces. However, James was quickly distracted from his observations –he was not staring- of Lily by the arrival of absolutely divinely smelling food.

Meals at Hogwarts were always exquisite, but there was something different about this meal, something more. The kitchen staff had really gone all out. As James and the others dug into their meal, by far the best at Hogwarts, any worries they had were driven from their minds. James, Sirius, Remus, Peter, and all of the other inhabitants of the Great Hall chatted joyously and generally enjoyed their final meals.

Dinner seamlessly transitioned into dessert and still James and the others chatted on and continued eating. They discussed their summer plans, though Sirius and Remus were a little vague on the details. All four also promised to write letters to each other throughout the summer. Also, word had gotten round through Gryffindor house that the four first years had been responsible for uncovering the truth about the broom tamperings, and several older Gryffindor students came by throughout the meal to thank and congratulate the four on their findings and their relentless work.

Finally, as the consumption of food slowed, and a general feeling of completeness began to permeate the room, Professor Dumbledore stood. He, like the start-of-term feast and other school wide celebrations, had been sitting at the head position of the staff table. As he stood, the hall quieted down, preparing for another Dumbledore speech and, more importantly, the announcement of the winner of the House Cup.

"Good evening! I trust we've all had our fill of that absolutely delicious meal. The kitchen staff have truly out done themselves! A fitting, celebratory end to this year. Now, normally I would take only a few minutes of your time to announce the winner of the House Cup, impart a few words of wisdom, and dismiss you to enjoy your final evening here. However, recent events have made it clear to me that a few more pieces of wisdom and perhaps an old man's plea are necessary. So, unfortunately, I will be taking a few more moments of your time tonight."

A murmur of concern spread throughout the Great Hall, but it quickly died down and Professor Dumbledore continued his speech. "Over the past year, a small group of students chose to lash out at others within the school for a simple sense of victory, or betterment, or superiority. This is greatly troubling. Quidditch is a terrific sport, and the thrill of competition is like nothing else. However, it is important not to get too caught up in that competition.

"Unity, both within each house and, more importantly it appears, between each house should be of the upmost concern. Division, for whatever reason, can be easily exploited and lead to destruction and devastation. From here on out, each person sitting in this room should look to focus on what we share, and not what we don't."

As Dumbledore spoke, James got a sense that the Headmaster was talking about more than just inter-house division. It was something larger with much greater, more life-altering consequences that was on his mind. What, exactly that was though, James hadn't the slightest idea.

"That being said, the staff and I have decided that, to eliminate competition now, when everyone has been working so hard, would be foolish. This year, we will award a House Cup. And we will continue to do so for the foreseeable future. But, going on, house points will be awarded in greater frequency and quantity to acts that promote inter-house unity. Acts against it will be severely discouraged and dealt with. As a wise man once said, 'United we stand. Divided we fall.'

"So, without further ado, the winner of the House cup is," Dumbledore waved his wand and the banners that had previously been black with the Hogwarts crest changed into blue and bronze with a prominent eagle. "With 1325 points, Ravenclaw!" A cheer went up from that house's table. Having concluded the festivities with the announcement, Dumbledore then dismissed the students to enjoy their final night at Hogwarts for that year.

* * *

The next morning dawned bright, as if nature itself was happy about the end of term and the freedom of the now arrived summer. James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter awoke late in the morning, dressed, and packed up their last few belongings. A note posted in the common room a few days prior had notified them that their trunks would be brought down to the trains for them, so, after a quick breakfast, the boys headed down to the carriages that would transport them to the train.

However, as their carriage rattled down the path of the Hogwarts grounds, the four first year Gryffindors had one final trick, one final prank up their sleeves. About halfway down to the train station, James, Sirius, and Remus pulled out their wands and pointed them out the window at the cloudless blue sky.

"Ningo," they spoke, and the sky began to fill with white clouds. The clouds quickly darkened and then began to spill their contents, fluffy white snowflakes. The horseless carriages halted and the students within them poured outside, shocked at the sight. It had been nowhere near cold enough for snow only a few moments before.

Everyone stood around in amazement, watching the snow fall and blanket the Hogwarts' grounds. Some simply held out their hands to catch the flakes. Some threw their heads back and opened their mouths to catch the flakes. Despite the rapid cooling, no one seemed really upset or perturbed by it, probably too taken by the strangeness of the event to be upset.

After only a few moments, the ground around the carriages was covered with an inch of fluffy white powder. James and Sirius gave each other a look and then turned to look at Remus and Peter, signalling everyone that their plan was now well in motion. It was time for phase two.

James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter carefully moved throughout the crowd, separating from each other. Once they were in position, they, as inconspicuously as possible, bent down and gathered up some of the snow. Each boy carefully worked the snow in their hands before once again searching for each other.

"Snowball fight!" James exclaimed before he hurtled his small, almost perfectly spherical ball into the air. The other three quickly followed suit and hurled their own snowballs. All four hit random victims and had their desired effect. The victims, as well as several others responding to James' call bent down and began making their own snowballs. Quickly, nearly all of the students who had emptied out of the carriages were involved in a good natured battled of snow.

When James, Sirius, Remus, and Peter finally boarded the Hogwarts Express, they had splitting sides from laughter, tired cheeks from smiles, sore arms from throwing, and were covered in snow. Many of the other students were in the same or similar states. Finally, a little late, the train pulled away from Hogwarts Station. As the grand castle slowly disappeared from view, James couldn't help but think:

'What a great first year. Can't wait to see what next year has in store.'

**The End**


End file.
